Consequences
by HellHathPie986
Summary: Devotion and care seemed to be at the very bottom of Doflamingo's list of required self-improvements, regardless of the arrival of his newest and youngest crew member. But with the unfortunate circumstances of Law's sudden appearance, the fearsome pirate captain might need to adjust his violent temperament before he hurls the toddler over the rail of his ship too many times.
1. Romance Dawn

If he had a choice in this matter and was actually asked face to face then the answer would have obviously been no. He had no experience in the subject, no instinct on the matter whatsoever and hell, he was probably more qualified to be admitted into a psychiatric ward far away from any of the corruptible new generations rather than taking care of one. Doflamingo honestly believed that if it weren't for his childhood friend already being dead he'd strangle the woman himself for even considering him for this plan. The pirate captain stared down at the object of his current predicament, restraining himself from just reaching out and pinching a few of his fingers around the little boy's neck which would successfully end the kid's life and free him from the burden dumped on his deck. If there was anything he hated more than people not upholding their part of a deal or not paying him back borrowed money it was children, and Doflamingo _hated _missed payments.

The little boy sighed, heaving his chest up and down as he continued to peacefully sleep on top of the captain's bed without a single worry for the seething man standing next to him. Doflamingo slowly cracked his knuckles from agitation before reaching up a hand, pinching the bridge of his nose and shutting his eyes as tight as he could. The seventeen-year-old honestly had no idea what to do at this very point in time but he was extremely tempted to find something, anything, alive and beat the shit out of it just to relieve this anger building steady closer to his boiling point.

And that's exactly where the teenage captain had been as soon as he'd found the "bundle of joy" neatly tucked in a basket on the deck of his ship. For the past three hours Doflamingo had gone around the town he and his crew were currently docked at and destroyed anything he could get his hands on. Needless to say the town was hardly recognizable from its previous state and half of the residents were dead while the other half were injured terribly. Not that he gave any second thoughts to that; if they weren't strong, fast, or smart enough to get out of his way, then the residents here deserved what they got.

A few unintelligible noises came from the toddler on the captain's bed and Doflamingo slowly pried open an eye to see the little boy shifting around like he was about to wake up. To the pirate's displeasure, the kid did indeed wake up and was now blinking drearily at him. The young man hadn't the slightest clue of what he was currently supposed to do but he was pretty sure that he shouldn't listen to the voice in his head nagging him to chuck the brat straight over the side of his ship. She wouldn't approve of that and he was pretty sure that woman would find a way to haunt him for the rest of his days and cause his luck to completely dry up until he died a slow and painful death by some otherworldly event. Then again, whether she was already performing the torture by dropping off her first and only born child practically on his door step with nothing but a short letter harly even explaining who the brat was and what had happened to her was extremely questionable. Doflamingo reached into his pocket and pulled out the letter one more time to see if there was something written there that he was missing.

~~0

_Donquixote Doflamingo,_

_I apologize for the last minute notice and my lack of contact for the past few years but there is something urgent that I must ask since you are the only one that I trust enough to complete the task. _

_Take care of my son. He was born nine months ago on October 6th and I have no one left to turn to for his safe keeping. His father is the same man I've been with since you and I last went our separate ways and is in no position to be looking after a child. _

_By the time you have read this letter I will already be dead. You were right when you told me all of those years ago that the organization I was affiliated with was nothing but corrupted men and I wish I had listened. Maybe then my child would be growing up with his mother and a proper father unlike the man I had run off with. _

_Best of wishes to you both. _

0~~

The pirate crumpled up the piece of paper and held it firmly between his palms. Nothing new had jumped out at him and the fifth time reading it hadn't answered any of his remaining questions. It seemed she was gone and he was stuck with her brat.

A small gurgle escaped from the little boy in front of him and the pirate just stared at the child. He couldn't remember ever being around someone so small and fragile-looking which begged the question of whether the kid was going to survive on his ship for very long or not.

Oh well, her mistake.

Another few squeaks came from the toddler and Doflamingo glared at him, knowing that even behind his colored glasses people still feared his harsh gaze. The captain was currently in no mood to deal with a sniveling brat and made that point thoroughly known with his expression. But this only seemed to amuse the child who giggled happily while clapping his chubby little hands together. The pirate growled in his throat and shifted the crumpled paper into one hand before tossing it at the kid, successfully bouncing it off of the little boy's head and silencing him.

"Who the fuck do you think you are, brat?" He asked menacingly. He expected the kid to start crying or whining or something like that since everyone he had heard from always said that's what small children do all day everyday, but again the little boy just smiled happily and extended both of his arms in front of him, squealing with joy. The captain grumbled something under his breath and reached out a hand, snatching up the toddler by the scruff of his shirt and lifting the boy up to his eye level.

"What the hell are you so happy about?" The captain snarled, keeping his angry glare on the kid. The toddler cooed innocently and reached out his hands, just brushing the edge of the pirate's glasses with his pudgy fingers.

"You know you were abandoned right? Left here to die on my ship by your own mother?" Doflamingo stated, his facial features unwavering. The kid didn't seem to understand what the man just said and continued to feel around with his tiny hands, running the tips of his fingers over the rims of the captain's lenses.

"Nobody wants you and I'm very close to snapping your neck in half because your very existence pisses me off." The pirate stated as darkly as he could. He wasn't entirely sure what he was trying to get at by threatening someone who didn't appear to even understand inflection but the little boy in his grasp was seriously riding on his nerves. The kid continued to ignore him and made himself busy by pulling Doflamingo's purple tinted glasses off of his nose. The boy held them by their frames in front of him and cooed in awe while the young man just stared unamusedly at the kid with his same hostile glare. The toddler turned back to the pirate and seemed to finally notice the other's anger as soon as he met with the captain's piercing stare. But the little boy wasn't scared and just reached out a chubby hand, placing it at the base of Doflamingo's forehead, in between his eyes, before trailing it down to the tip of his nose. The pirate raised an eyebrow, watching as the child then began patting his nose and muttering indecipherable sounds.

"You're not very bright, are you?" The captain asked, his expression shifting from an angry glare to a peeved look. The kid giggled again and turned his attention back to the colored glasses in his hand. He held them up in front of him and inspected them with a scrutinizing gaze before pulling them over his own eyes just like how Doflamingo had them.

"You're nothing better than a lumpy potato, huh?" The young man commented before securing the boy's chin in his free hand and swiveling the kid's head from one side to the other. The toddler was left confused for a moment but quickly snapped out of it, grabbed the captain's first finger in both of his tiny hands and began speaking random noises again. When the pirate tried to pull away he found that he couldn't.

"Let go, brat." The pirate warned, tugging his hand a little more firmly. But the little boy refused to do so and held on with all of his strength, which was surprising strong. Doflamingo pulled his hand, slowly bring it closer to himself as he continued to try and get out of the grasp of the toddler. The captain gave one last quick yank and was free, but not before the kid managed to wrap his stubby arms around the young man's neck, giggling with his victory. Doflamingo cocked an eyebrow at the little boy's resourcefulness and internally questioned what exactly made the kid want to dangle from his neck. The pirate was about to retalliate and hopefully force the brat off of him (whether the kid was sent flying over the side of his ship in the fray or not was still up for debate) when he heard a familiar voice at his doorway.

"Is everything alright, sir?"

The captain turned to see his first mate standing at the entrance to his room, a questioning and stern look on his face. Doflamingo averted his attention back to the child currently clinging to him and frowned. He retrieved his glasses from the boy which caused the little one to dismay, squirming and calling out in disapproval, but the pirate just secured a hand underneath the child and another on his back after placing his shades where they belonged, successfully calming down the kid.

"Everything's fine, Vergo. But I'll need a favor from you." The captain said as he turned towards the other man. His first mate stood at attention and waited for his orders. "It seems we'll be having another crew member aboard for a while. I need you to get him a room and a bed; something he can't easily role out of but nothing fancy. You can probably just nail a few boards to a cot and keep it in the room next to mine." Doflamingo requested, approaching the man in front of him until they were just an arms length apart. Vergo furrowed his brows behind his sunglasses.

"Of course, sir. But why are we keeping the kid?" He asked, skeptical about the whole situation as well as the sight in front of him. It wasn't every day a person could see one of the most eccentric and feared rookie pirate captains on the Grand Line holding a small child so gently and Vergo was starting to wonder what had been written in that letter.

"Personal reasons." Was all the captain replied. A moment of silence passed between the two before the first mate left the entry way to complete his orders. Doflamingo watched as the man departed and shut the door behind him. He walked back to his bed and sat down with a heavy exhale. Today had been a long day and the captain was more than ready to have the surprises halt for a while.

A small yawn came from the little boy in his arms and Doflamingo glanced down at the kid. The child definitely resembled each of his parents in different aspects which was both welcomed and despised. She was always free spirited, following nothing but the wind and happy to deal with any obstacle that obstructed her path. She was devoted and caring, a diamond in the rough with beauty far exceeding anything the pirate had ever seen. In contrast, her lover was cold and hard and had nothing but a bleak future to look foreword to. He was silent and harsh, hardly letting any emotion show and always trying to dominate everyone and everything in his reach.

For the life of him Doflamingo couldn't even begin to put into words what it was he felt. It was a strange sensation of falling and seasickness whenever he was around that woman but he never wanted the feeling to stop. It was like he had become some masochistic fool that was too attached for his own good. For the many years he had been in her presence, Doflamingo had undergone a plethera of things in the organization the both of them had belonged to; some instances including near death experiences where he had willingly jumped in front of a weapon or attack in order to protect her. But that woman had chosen her path and went with the bastard who apparently couldn't even keep her safe and that was what truly made the captain angry.

Doflamingo removed the hand he had on the child's back and swung it away from himself until his fist connected with the wall. The wood easily shattered under his strength and startled the little boy in his arms. The kid let out a few noises of panic but was easily silenced when the pirate gently placed his hand on the child's back once again.

He suddenly remembered something about a moment they'd spent together where the both of them had had a conversation about adulthood and family life. He recollected that the topic had nearly bored him to tears but there was one point she had brought up that he'd never forgotten; she had told him the names she'd give her first born if it was either a girl or a boy. Of course she'd also included the last name of the prick whom she was so desperate to fuck, but Doflamingo would have none of that.

The pirate turned his attention back to the little boy and realised that the brat had already fallen asleep again. It seemed that narcoleptic bastard had left something rather annoying in the kid's gene pool, but maybe in the boy's early life it would be handy. Doflamingo lifted his hand from the toddler's back once again but this time set it down on top of his head, running his fingers through the little boy's downy hair.

"Welcome to the crew, Trafalgar Law." The pirate quietly announced as he put that woman's sur name and the one she picked out for a boy together. It had a nice ring to it, but the child would have to eventually decide if this ship was indeed welcoming.

Doflamingo chuckled dryly as he realized the responsibility he had just run straight into without much of a plan, but shrugged internally since most of his decisions already had little planning time with big consequences. The pirate layed back on his bed and closed his eyes as he decided to let the future take the reigns and lead the way for now. It seemed love really was the cruelest of jokes life could play.

~0~

AN: oh look! another theory! this came to mind and cluttered my thoughts, refusing to leave me alone until i wrote it down. i wanted to write about Law coming aboard Doflamingo's ship when he was a baby but the only reason i could think of for our eccentric captain allowing this was having emotional attachment to the kid somehow. and yes, the father i have in mind is a character already in the OP world (brownie points to whoever can guess his name ;)) and no, i dont have a name for his mother and probably wont give her one.  
like it? dislike it? wtf am i doing wasting my time on other fanfics and should just get back to my already turtle-paced updates?  
...ignore that last option e_e


	2. Stand up

Doflamingo considered himself to be a morning person since he was always one of the first on the ship to be awake on any given day, but when he was woken at god-only-knows-what-time AM by a certain toddler he wasn't exactly all roses and sunshine. The pirate lay in his bed, completely covered in various blankets and sheets when he felt a tug on one of the sides. The sun wasn't even close to being up yet but the little boy had managed to crawl out of his own bed, traverse a bit of the hallway and wander into the captain's room as if he owned the place. A few grunts of exertion and frustration came from Law as he continued to try and pull himself onto the teenager's bed by climbing up the sheets dangling over the side. Doflamingo rolled his eyes in annoyance as the first day of very many long years had already begun.

The pirate vaguely wondered how long it would take for the kid to become fully functional and self-dependant but cringed when he realized it wouldn't be soon enough.

A few more soft noises escaped from the toddler and before he knew it Doflamingo could see a tiny hand poking over the side of his bed. It clutched the fabric as another was also brought further up onto the mattress and the top of the little boy's head peaked up over the side as well. The captain glared in irritation before uncovering one of his arms from underneath his sheets, grabbing a handful of the back of the kid's shirt, lifting him up and away from his bed and turning the brat back around to face the door he had entered from. Doflamingo then set him down, gave the little boy a light push and finally turned over to face away from the toddler.

It only took Law a few seconds to fully compute everything that had just happened before he realized he'd been duped. The boy called out in dissatisfaction and collapsed to his knees, returning to crawl over and start the whole process of climbing onto pirate's bed over again. Doflamingo tried his best to ignore the little boy's advances, pretending to sleep and hoping the toddler got bored and searched for something else to pester, but after several minutes the child had managed to get all of the way onto the bed and was now kneeling next to his ear and patting his head.

"Mama!" The kid called out. Doflamingo was vaguely impressed; most sniveling brats at the whopping age of nine months could hardly crawl, let alone talk. But the word Law had just said brought up a whole new conversation topic that the pirate didn't think the kid would entirely understand yet.

"She's not here." The captain muttered, wishing for a least another hour of sleep before being so rudely awoken. A moment of silence passed between the two before the kid resumed patting the elder's head.

"Mama!" The toddler called out once more, this time a little more urgently. Doflamingo sighed in irritation and spoke again.

"Your mother's dead." He stated flatly, his impatience evident in his voice. Another moment of stillness filled the room as the captain's proclamation hung in the air. Just as he was about to close his eyes and feign sleep the pirate thought he could feel the slightest of trembles travel through the boy's finger tips.

"Mama…" Law meekly said in a quivering voice. Doflamingo immediately realized his mistake in thinking the kid wasn't old enough to understand basic sentences and mentally slapped himself for it. It's not like he was worried about the little boy's feelings or anything loving and gushy like that, but he really didn't feel like dealing with a crying child right now. Or ever, for that matter. A few hiccups and sobs came from the boy and the pirate grumbled under his breath in irritation. He quickly shot out an arm and snatched the boy from where he was kneeling, lifting him to the other side of the bed and pulling him underneath the covers. He held Law close to himself in what he hoped to be a somewhat affectionate manner as tears continued to stream from the toddler's eyes and cursed his bad luck for having to deal with all of this. He knew yelling and threats wouldn't help the situation currently and decided to wait until the kid at least calmed down even slightly.

Minutes passed and soon the boy was only reduced to dry hiccups and sniffles as he continued to grieve for his mother. By now the captain had had enough of the whole situation and decided his one good deed of the year was all used up.

"Stop crying already." The teenager said gruffly. The boy tensed at the elder's rigid demeanor, balling his fists tighter against the pirate's bare chest but still sniffling endlessly. Doflamingo sighed bitterly.

"What did I say? Stop your pathetic weeping or I will throw you overboard." The pirate threatened as he waited for the younger to comply. Law wasn't entirely sure what the teen just said, but he knew he wouldn't be able to get away with anything like the day before. Unfortunately, the lamenting wouldn't stop and he continued to shiver and sniffle as he silently cried. Doflamingo growled in his throat.

"You asked for it, brat."

~0~

It was turning out to be a lovely morning already and despite how early it was in the day a warm breeze was passing through the air. Vergo sat pleasantly at an outside table towards the bow of the ship, soaking in the rays of the sun as it just began to peak over the horizon while he read the morning paper. The News Coo had been rather early this morning in delivering, but it didn't matter since the first mate was always the first up. Doflamingo often commented on that fact and questioned in a teasing manner whether the man slept or not. Vergo did indeed sleep but didn't require as many hours as most people and found himself to be more refreshed with a maximum of five hours of rest.

But his peaceful morning was soon over as it was interrupted by shouts and crying. Of course, the two noises were coming from two different people and Vergo didn't need to see them to know it was his captain and the new kid. Doflamingo kicked open the door leading out to the deck and stormed over to the nearest railing in nothing but a bathrobe before dangling the child over the side by his ankle. The little boy immediately stopped wailing when he glanced down and noticed the churning water of the ocean as it grazed against the side of the ship and replaced his expression of distressed for one of fear.

"Rule number one, fucking brat." The pirate seethed through clenched teeth, obviously having to hold his anger back more than he was letting on. "You want to stay on this ship, you don't piss me off. Understand?"

To Vergo's amazement, the child didn't even make a peep as he vigorously nodded his head up and down in affirmation. Doflamingo snarled deep in his throat as if making his point more noteworthy before bringing the kid back onto his ship and dropping him straight onto the deck. Vergo cringed slightly as the boy's head connected harshly with the wood but was again amazed when the child didn't make a single sound of protest. The boy sat up a clutched the top of his head as the captain spoke.

"Are you going to cry again?" The teen asked in a livid tone. The kid shook his head a few times and continued to remain silent. Doflamingo folded his arms.

"Then stand up." The captain said much more controlled. When the kid didn't react, the pirate repeated himself and motioned something with his hands that he thought would reinforce his statement. The boy obliged and shakily got to his feet before looking up at the elder like he expected some kind of positive feedback.

Doflamingo just pushed the boy over with his foot, causing him to fall backwards onto his butt.

"I said stand up." The pirate stated again. The toddler looked up at the teen a bit confused but complied once more only to be pushed over just as he almost got to his feet.

"Stand. Up." The captain repeated himself more firmly than before. Law gazed up into the elder's eyes as if searching for what the man was actually saying but found nothing. This time the kid scooted himself across the deck away from the pirate and tried getting to his feet. He eventually stood up straight and waited for what the teen was going to do next but was only given a satisfied smirk before the captain turned his back and walked towards the door leading into the ship. The boy scuttled quickly after the pirate, stumbling several times as he began his longest walk ever but managed to slip just past the door as it began to close.

Vergo watched as the strangest duo he had ever seen disappeared into the ship and wondered how on earth this combination came to be.

~0~

AN: i couldnt help but write another chapter. this idea is just so cute ~( ^ u^)~  
and the father of the year award goes to... not doflamingo!


	3. Mornings

Seeing as it was morning bright and early, a few rituals were needed to be kept. First and foremost, ground rules were definitely going to be set about bathroom privileges. Since the communal stalls and showers were nothing but havoc and chaos day in and out, Law was allowed to use Doflamingo's private washroom until he was old enough to deal with his business in a quick and simple fashion. In other words, the pirate captain was forced to share.

He hated sharing.

A small step stool was left in the bathroom for ease of access for the little boy since he was too short to do just about anything which only added to the list of things the captain was no longer able to enjoy to himself; it seemed even the teen's environment was beginning to warp around the kid's needs. He began to notice that his lists of freedoms were also dwindling drastically with the arrival of the toddler. Why anyone would willingly dig their own ruts by consensually having children was beyond the pirate's comprehension.

Chibi Law emerged from the bathroom after finishing the first part of his daily routine and searched around for Doflamingo. When the boy caught sight of the teenager sitting on his bed he quickly rushed over only to be met with a glare which stopped him in his tracks. The kid stayed where he was until a little light bulb suddenly went off in his head and he ran back to the bathroom when he remembered he'd forgotten to wash his hands.

Doflamingo squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose, calming himself down before he managed to permanently ruin his blood pressure.

One step down, a million more to go.

~0~

The two walked down one of the few hallways on the ship, heading straight for the kitchen. Only when the captain heard the kid's stomach growl just a little while ago had he noticed how hungry he also was, so he decided to venture off in search of food even though the cook was still fast asleep. They arrived at the bottom of the stairs which lead up to the second story with Law panting for breath after having to keep up with the pirate's longer strides, but Doflamingo paid the kid no mind and began heading up. The little boy loyally tagged along but only managed to climb a single stair every so often. By the time he had gone up three steps, Doflamingo was already reaching the top. The captain arrived at the second story effortlessly and only then decided to check on the progress of the kid that had been following him non-stop all morning.

The teen grumbled a few profanities under his breath as he descended the stairs once more, hefted the toddler onto his shoulder and resumed his path for the kitchen. A few nonsense noises came from the boy but Doflamingo only ignored them and just focused on the job at hand.

When he entered the kitchen, Doflamingo immediately dumped Law onto the island counter stationed in the middle of the room before he began rummaging through the place. Out of the corner of his eye the pirate noticed a few bananas sitting in a wooden bowl and vaguely remembered the brat hardly had any teeth, only little white nubs sticking slightly out of his pink gums in various places. He walked over and tore one of the yellow fruits off before ripping the peal apart and tearing the pail fruit in two. The captain handed Law the part still attached to the peel and popped the other half into his mouth before heading straight for the coffee maker. As always, Vergo had already made a pot which caused the pirate's day to become a little better. As he poured himself a cup, the toddler spoke up.

"Anana!" The boy exclaimed, obviously excited about something but Doflamingo wasn't amused.

"Banana." The pirate corrected over his shoulder as he then poured a hefty amount of cream and sugar into his cup. It seemed he was going to need it and many other of his usual and splurging events throughout the day if he was going to make it to the evening, hell, to the end of the morning.

_Baby steps._ He thought to himself as he took his first sip and turned back to the kid, leaning against the counter. The boy was curiously inspecting his breakfast as if it was his first time seeing the fruit, but obviously it wasn't since he basically knew what its name was.

"Anana?" Law questioned once more, looking up at the teenager for confirmation.

"_Banana_" The pirate enunciated, becoming slightly more aggravated and thus taking another swig from his coffee mug.

"Banana…" The little boy repeated to himself, still staring his food down as if expecting the fruit to come to life and dance around on the table.

"Just eat the damned thing already." Doflamingo bit out angrily, sending a peevish look to the boy sitting on the opposite counter he was leaning on. Law quickly obliged and began biting into his breakfast and swallowing contently. The two stayed like that, enjoying the peace of the morning as the sun barely slipped over the horizon and before the majority of the crew was awake and making all kinds of ruckus. Or at least Doflamingo was; he really couldn't tell what the kid was thinking as he shoved the soft fruit through the orifice in his face. The pirate stood there, watching the brat in fascination, confusion and a bit of horror as the toddler attempted to eat the yellow fruit. For a brainiac kid, the boy really didn't know how to feed himself. Banana was coated around the kid's lips and falling from his chin as Law continued to try and mash the thing into his mouth. The pirate figured he had given the boy the easiest thing to eat in this entire kitchen yet the brat still managed to get the majority of it somewhere other than his stomach.

Children truly were disgusting things.

The captain quickly set his coffee cup down, removed the slimy fruit from the little boy's grasp and dropping it into the sink. A few noises of protest came from the child but were easily silenced by the teen's glare suddenly fixing onto the toddler. Doflamingo sighed bitterly and grabbed one of the towels sitting off to the side of the sink and tossed it at the kid.

"Wipe your face off." The pirate instructed. Law gingerly picked up the cloth and inspected it a moment before smashing the towel to his face and rubbing vigorously.

Doflamingo let another exhale curl around his teeth as he tried to suppress his anger from exploding out in the form of profane words and harmful actions. The kid finished his task and looked up at the pirate expectantly as another growl escaped from his stomach. The captain swore several things under his breath and continued to scour the kitchen for something to give him until his cook was up in the kitchen.

Or he could go and wake his chef up… The pirate smacked the palm of his hand onto his forehead and cursed himself for being so stupid as to not have thought of that earlier.

It was definitely too early in the morning for him to be awake.

The captain began heading for the exit but stopped in his tracks when he heard a little noise of protest. He looked over to see Law staring at him with a mix if fear and desperation, as if pleading for him not to leave. If he wasn't such an asshole, the captain figured he'd probably stay behind or at least take the kid with him. But fortunately (in his case) he was cruel and evil and quickly left the room.

Unfortunately, the kid then began to cry. It wasn't anything like screaming and wailing for attention, but more like choked sobs as if the little boy was trying to hold it all back. Doflamingo cringed and cursed the internal part of his conscience that seemed to suddenly take control of his motor skills and steer him back into the kitchen. When he was back through the door, Law immediately stopped his crying and frantically began wiping the tears from his eyes as he remembered what would happen if he was caught in the act. The captain raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms.

"What the hell were you doing?" He asked the kid. Law tensed and lowered his fists from his eyes as he gingerly peeked out from behind them.

"Were you crying?" The pirate questioned in a slightly irked tone. The kid quickly shook his head and dropped his hands into his lap as if trying to hide the evidence. Doflamingo huffed lightly as he considered what to do next. He figured it was too early to terrify the brat just yet by dangling him over the side of the ship again, so he decided to let this one incident slide.

"You're not very sneaky." The teen stated, walking over to the toddler and placing a hand on the little boy's head before messing up what little hair was on top. Another gurgle came from the kid's stomach and the captain remembered what he had initially set out to do.

If he recalled correctly, kids drank milk. The pirate decided to give that a try for the time being and hopefully distract the little boy long enough to wake up the cook and get him to deal with the brat's meals. Doflamingo headed for the fridge and began searching for the drink. He easily found the large container and pulled it out, setting it on the counter before looking for a glass.

Suddenly, the events with the banana came to mind and the captain remembered that this kid was utterly useless at feeding himself without making a huge mess. He tried to think if there were any straws around but gave up before even checking the drawers as a brilliant plan came to mind.

Okay, it was a great idea in his mind but every loving and devoted mother in the world would probably want to strangle him for even thinking of it. The captain went for the liquor cabinet and looked for a certain bottle. When he found it, Doflamingo felt like cackling at his ingenious plan. It was a beer bottle smaller than most, but more importantly it had a thin neck and small opening which would be perfect for the mess-prone toddler. He quickly popped the top off and downed the liquid inside before heading for the milk in order to fill the empty glass container with the kid's drink. When the bottle was half full of milk he handed it to the boy but stopped as the toddler's little fingers wrapped around the glass.

"I'm going to wake up my chef and have him come up here to get you something to eat. If I hear one peep from you then you won't be eating anything until tomorrow." The pirate threatened before letting go of the container and ruffling the kid's hair once more. Law eagerly held the bottle to his lips and began drinking, paying the captain no mind as he left the kitchen.

After the cook had been woken none too gently by his captain he immediately came upstairs to the kitchen and was greeted by a child and his counters covered in banana and milk while the boy was busy drinking from a beer bottle.

The sight was not a pleasant thing so early in the morning.

~0~

AN: is anyone else squeeing like an excited fangirl while reading these chapters? because i certainly am while writing them.  
excuse me while i make unintelligible noises and flail my arms about as i continue to imagine papa Doffy and chibi Law scenes ~( x ux)~


	4. Do-fla-mingo

Being this young was a bit of a set back since the kid could hardly do anything of use, including speaking correctly. The captain was hoping to be able to get someone else who could teach Law about proper grammar and sentence structure, but there was one thing he was pretty sure he could achieve with the kid on his own.

"Doflamingo." The pirate stated slowly to the little boy in front of him, trying to get the kid to actually say his name instead of just making random noises, tugging at his pants, butchering the pronunciation of his name so horribly to the point where nobody could understand the boy or any other way Law tried to get the captain's attention.

"Dohaminno." The toddler repeated, trying his best to get his tongue to work properly but ultimately failing miserably. The pirate shook his head and tried again.

"_Doflamingo._" The teenager articulated once more, enunciating every syllable and consonant as best as he could. The two had been at this for about five minutes now and the kid had hardly made any progress.

"Dofaming." Law attempted again, concentrating as hard as he could on saying it correctly regardless of the fact that he still didn't have all of his baby teeth yet. His face was scrunched up as he put all of his focus on how to use his mouth correctly when speaking, but still had a long way to go. The pirate finally figured he was getting nowhere with this current plan and decided to try a different approach.

"Do-" The captain said, waiting for the boy to repeat after him.

"Do" Law stated confidently.

"fla-"

"Fla"

"mingo."

"Mingo."

"Doflamingo." The pirate finally finished, putting everything the kid had managed to say together into one word.

"Dofuaminno." Law stated proudly, smiling when he was sure he finally got it right. Of course he hadn't but was pretty close and the captain decided to consider the kid's progress to be good enough.

"Great, say it again." The teen instructed as he took a sip from his third cocktail, setting the nearly empty glass next to the other two he'd already polished off.

"Doffu…" The kid began, furrowing his eyebrows in concentration as he forgot the last part of the pirate's name once again. Doflamingo just gave him a bored glare and waited for something to click in the boy's memory. But when the kid looked up again and spoke it seemed he had disregarded all of their practice for the past few minutes and decided to just wing it.

"Doffu!" Law announced happily, giving the captain a cheeky smile as if asking whether of not he could use that name. The pirate continued to give the toddler his same uninterested glare but eventually broke and gave in, rolling his eyes as he spoke.

"Fine, sounds good." The captain said, internally rationalizing that the boy would eventually be able to say his name correctly, he'd just have to be patient and allow the brat to use the terrible nick-name for the time being.


	5. Bed Time

It seemed like an age-old ritual passed from child to child as if the majority of kids pledged to follow this social norm seeing as this scene was extremely overused and cliché, but right now Vergo was in no mood for fun and games.

Then again, when was he ever?

"I know you're hiding somewhere in here, brat. Get out right now." The pirate warned, walking through one of the main rooms on the ship while looking for a certain child. But Law didn't reveal himself and the first mate had to keep trying. He looked behind bookshelves, chairs, couches, and various other pieces of furniture only to come up empty handed.

"I don't want to have to make this anymore difficult than it has to be." The elder called out once more into the room where he knew the kid could hear him. Just as he was about to resort to drastic measures and turn everything in this current space over, Vergo got a better idea that would make this hunt much easier. He left the room, stepping through the doorway opposite of the one he first came in and hid behind the door as he barely shut it, pretending like he had gone all of the way through. It took a moment but the pirate's plan had worked perfectly and soon enough light footsteps from tiny feet could be heard scuttling across the room. Vergo burst through the door and charged at his prey, snatching the toddler into his arms and easily winning the battle.

"No!" Law called out as he realized he'd lost to the pirate. The boy squirmed in his captor's grasp and kicked his feet in protest, trying his best to escape.

"That's not going to work, kid. I don't care what you have against them, but you're taking a bath right now."

~0~

The boy sat waist deep in cold water, shivering every now and again as he watched Vergo scouring through the bathroom looking for a bar of soap. The pirate opened and closed every cabinet almost twice but had yet to lay eyes on it, which was strange because he could have sworn he saw it just a short while ago…

The toddler suddenly spoke up, making various noises and pointing straight at the pirate. He turned his attention to the child and followed where the kid was pointing until he was looking behind himself but saw nothing out of the ordinary, however his actions only made the kid start raising his voice in protest.

"Veygo!" The boy called out, continuing to point at the first mate.

It seemed everyone in the crew the kid was acquainted with had their own nick-name, but Vergo thought nothing of it and was just satisfied that his resembled his real name more than what others on the ship had been given.

And it was certainly better than Doffu.

Vergo then thought maybe the little boy was pointing at something on his face, so he raised a hand and began searching for what the kid was trying to tell him about. His fingers brushed against something familiar and the first mate realized he had just found the soap.

How everything wound up on his face, the pirate would never be able to guess.

He pulled the bar from his cheek and grabbed a rinse cloth he'd found in a drawer before handing both objects to the shivering child still awaiting his bath in the cold water. When the boy hesitantly accepted both of the items in his outstretched hands the soap instantly fell from the toddler's grasp while he just stared at the cloth. The boy then looked up at the pirate with an expression very akin to "are you fucking kidding me?".

Law was definitely spending too much time with Doflamingo.

"What?" The pirate asked the toddler "If you had just gotten in the tub when I first drew the bath then the water wouldn't be this cold. Not to mention the doctor and I wouldn't have had to go searching for you after you decided to disappear." Vergo stated clearly. The doctor of the ship had agreed to bathe the kid since Doflamingo was currently in no mood to deal with anyone and the first mate had no experience nor any idea what to do with children, yet the man was probably still running around the ship looking for the little boy. "And since he hasn't come back yet you're either going to have to wait for him or do it yourself." The pirate declared as he folded his arms and leaned against the counter across from the tub.

Law whimpered once but just turned his attention back to his bath and attempted to grab the soap from where it was floating. When it was in his grasp the kid then began smoothing the bar across his chest like his mother had done numerous times in the past only to lose his grip on the slippery object when his hands were shaking too much.

The little boy sneezed and glanced up at the pirate still standing in front of him.

Vergo frowned to remind the kid he was on his own but suddenly realized that if something wasn't done soon the toddler would probably catch a cold very quickly and a sick child sounded like more of a pain to deal with than a healthy one. The pirate sighed in agitation and knelt down; after all, how hard could it be to give a kid a bath?

The first mate took the washcloth from Law and dunked it in the water while reaching for the bar. He lathered the cloth with the soap and set to work scrubbing the kid down. Several squeaks and noises of protest informed him that he wasn't exactly cut out for this job, but right now he couldn't care less. When the pirate finished he dumped a few handfuls of water over the child's head to wash off the residue and considered his job complete so he grabbed a towel and wrapped it around the boy, careful not to let it touch the water, and lifted Law from the tub.

The toddler was definitely shivering horribly but seemed to be calming down the longer Vergo held him as he began to warm up. The pirate muttered a few things under his breath as he headed into his captain's bedroom and set the child down on the large bed. A few tiny clothes were left out for the boy and this time Vergo really decided he wasn't going to help.

"Since I helped you with your bath you can do this yourself." He informed the kid as he stepped back and folded his arms once more. Law gave the pirate a confused look before glancing at the clothes with great contemplation. He wiggled out of the towel and set to work in his first attempt to dress himself.

But when Vergo saw that the toddler was trying to pull his legs through his shirt, he knew he'd have to intervene once more. The pirate snagged the garment from the little boy and stuffed it over his head before pulling his arms through then took care of the rest of the kid's outfit. By the time the first mate had finished the kid was smiling oh so sweetly up at the elder.

"Crafty brat." Vergo muttered under his breath, Law just giggled happily as he hopped down from the bed and began leaving the room. The pirate took a few long strides and caught up with the child easily.

"Where do you think you're going?" The first mate asked as he plopped a hand down on Law's head and steered him in the opposite direction the kid had initially set out for down the hallway. The toddler called out a few times in protest but was led to his room nonetheless. Vergo opened the door to the boy's room and guided him inside until he was standing at the foot of his own bed.

"If I see you out of your room any time between now and sunrise tomorrow you're going to have a lot more to worry about than a cold bath." The pirate warned as he let go of Law's head and made his way to the door. The boy watched as the elder was almost through the entrance and realized he was about to be left entirely alone.

"Veygo!" The kid called out in a distressed tone. But the pirate just ignored him and left, closing the door behind him and leaving the child alone in the vacant room. Law waited for the first mate to hopefully come back into the room but was only greeted with silence as he stood by himself in solitude.

The emptiness terrified him.

~0~

Doflamingo walked down the hallway to his room, completely aware of the fact that he probably drank way too much over the course of the day.

If only his chef couldn't make such damn good cocktails…

The captain quickly disregarded that thought with a sharp laugh since even he couldn't take the idea seriously and eventually arrived at his door, having to steady himself with the knob before turning it and bursting into his room. His first order of business was to kick off his shoes then collapse face first on his bed, which he easily accomplished. Just as the pirate was about to close his eyes and fall asleep then and there he noticed something out of place about his bed. Doflamingo had to squint his eyes a bit but finally noticed a lump in the sheets near one of his pillows. The captain cocked an eyebrow in confusion but pushed himself back into a standing position and reached for the lump. He pulled the covers back and revealed a certain toddler laying there fast asleep.

_Odd._ The pirate thought as he clearly remembered telling the doctor and Vergo the kid was to sleep in his own bed, no questions about it. But he just shrugged it off and thought maybe the toddler wandered in here on his own sometime in the middle of the night.

Doflamingo bent over and scooped the child into his arms, heading for the door and leaving for the kid's room. Law didn't stir as the captain made the trek across the hall and ended up in front of this kid's bed but when the pirate tried removing the little boy's arms from around his neck he held on tight and refused to let go.

The captain cursed under his breath and tried again with a little more force but was unsuccessful. He then attempted to wake the kid up only to have a single word stop him.

"Mommy…" Law whispered in his sleep. Doflamingo blinked a few times, completely flabbergasted and honestly a little lost of what he should do. It was obvious the toddler still hadn't managed to learn how to properly deal with his mother no longer being around and the captain was pretty sure the little boy had developed separation issues.

_Shit._ The pirate thought as he weighed every option that came to mind over and over again. But the only idea prominent enough circling around in his brain currently was that he was tired, the kid was already asleep, and he was too drunk to come up with anything that would actually help this situation in any way. Doflamingo grumbled a bit but turned on his heel and headed for the door. _"This is the only time."_ The captain told himself as he returned to his room and crawled underneath the covers with Law still in his arms.

~0~

AN: I like writing for Law, Doflamingo and Vergo because I know that each and every one of you also read through the entire manga like dorky fangirls/fanboys and it makes me feel accepted into some sort of strange group of OP fans with absolutely no lives :D  
YOU'RE ALL AMAZING! I may not know any of you personally but when you read my stories it makes me happy :') I thank you from the bottom of my heart~


	6. Papa

The sun began peaking out over the horizon, lighting every contour of the ship as Vergo and Doflamingo sat at an outside table and enjoyed the rays scattering over the open ocean. The two pirates passed different sections of the newspaper between each other, both drinking coffee in mutual silence and taking pleasure in the peacefulness while they could.

But soon enough a third member wanted to join in.

Law approached the pirates and stood on his tip-toes next to the captain, trying to peer over the man's arm to look at what he was doing. Doflamingo was in a fairly good mood and decided to share his reading material with the kid; he picked up the boy by his upper arm and sat him in his lap before returning his attention to the section he was on. Of course the kid couldn't read yet and just stared at the pictures while trying to understand what all of the squiggles where on the paper. They were definitely pretty, but held no meaning to him so the little boy just studied the photos on each page as the pirate flipped through the newspaper. But suddenly a certain image caught the kid's eye as he recognized the man in the photograph.

"Papa!" Law exclaimed, his face beaming as he identified his father in a large picture in the section Doflamingo was currently reading. The captain glanced at where the little boy was pointing and also recognized the man, but the feelings the two were currently experiencing were not mutual.

"Yes it is. Do you want to know what your father has been up to since you last saw him?" The pirate asked with a sly smirk on his face. He was also curious to find out what his old comrade had been doing recently that got him and his girlfriend into so much trouble.

"Yeah, yeah!" The boy stated excitedly, bouncing up and down on the pirate's lap enthusiastically. Law hadn't seen the man in a few weeks and their meetings before then were scarce so he didn't know much about his dad, but one thing was for sure; he had never been scared or sad when around the man which meant the kid liked him.

"Alright." The captain said before snickering and clearing his throat as he began to read.

"_The battles throughout this world seem to only be increasing in numbers as more individuals continue to stand against their government and oppose the laws that have been set in stone for generations. Among these individuals is the most dangerous of all; the revolutionary army lead by the infamous Dragon_." Doflamingo read straight from the paper. The boy didn't understand everything that was just said but smiled wide when he heard his father's name and no words related to 'death' before or after it. The pirate continued reading.

"_Nearly one week ago a battle broke out between Dragon's forces and the World Government leading to numerous causalities on both sides of the fray. The revolutionaries had planned on issuing a surprise attack against many of the World Nobles and disrupted certain ceremonies. They managed to free nearly half of the slaves belonging to the Nobility and destroyed many facilities before the Marines stepped in and restored the peace_…" The pirate stopped reading as he couldn't continue while he let a loud cackle erupt from himself. He brought a hand to his face, trying to calm down but only continued to laugh maniacally at what he'd just read. Every word in this article was nothing but biased bullshit written to favor the government and nobility which just made the captain laugh even harder.

The little boy looked up at the pirate currently losing it over the article and couldn't understand why he was laughing so hard. Vergo had also looked up from his section of the newspaper and was giving his captain a strange look. Doflamingo eventually got himself under control and folded up the paper before tossing it on the table, after all, he didn't need to finish reading to know the article would only droll on about how "dangerous" the revolution was. The pirate wiped away the tears that had gathered at the corners of his eyes and spoke. "If there's one man I hate above all else in this world, it would be that bastard Dragon." The captain elaborated, causing Law to look up at him with confusion in his eyes when he tried to understand what the elder was saying. Doflamingo continued.

"I don't agree with his bigoted views on justice and equality; I don't give a shit what person stands at the top of the government or whether the nobility of the world are just fat and licentious pigs taking advantage of their money and status because none of it matters to me. I will always go against what society agrees on and never fall in step with another because it's utterly beneath me." The pirate stated as easily as if discussing something simple like the weather. Law stared at the teenager when he began speaking again.

"But there is one thing that I respect about your dad, kid." The captain said to the boy. "Whether I believe in his cause or not, your father still stands for what he dreams of and hasn't had a relapse in judgment since the moment I first met him." The pirate placed a hand on top of the kid's head and ruffled his hair around.

"But it seems your father is no longer holding onto anything that I find interesting anymore. Perhaps I should finally forget about him since I abandoned his army a few years ago." Doflamingo chuckled as he pulled the boy off of his lap and stood. He then grabbed his coffee cup and began walking towards the entryway. Law looked over at Vergo but the first mate had already gone back to reading so the kid decided to follow after the captain. He scampered across the deck and managed to catch up with the pirate just has he disappeared inside of the ship and headed for the kitchen.

~0~

AN: it seems like Luffy and Law have a lot a lot of similarities personality wise and with some of their actions so doesn't it kind of make sense for Law to be Luffy's half brother? not to mention Law can actually put up with Luffy, maybe because it's some sort of familial attachment? that's my thought anyways~


	7. Ups-A-Daisy

Trafalgar Law and Doflamingo walked through the streets of some island their ship had been docked at for supplies. It seemed to the captain when he looked around like he had picked the most perfect place to drop anchor since the town he and the kid were currently making their way though had just about everything he despised.

So when he said perfect, the pirate really meant _revolting._

Doflamingo gagged internally since the only things he could see around were happy families and neatly trimmed lawns as if he had stepped into some weird alternate dimension in another universe far away from the Grand Line. Right now he would gladly head back to the ship rather than walk down these streets so he and his crew could depart without a fuss and then launch several exploding canon balls from the ship before setting the entire city on fire, but the kid needed clothes. Law had already managed to out grow his old ones and hell, he was already here, might as well see what he could steal.

Err, buy.

The pirate was in desperate need of a drink.

The two rounded a corner still looking for a clothing store for kids when they came to a community park. Happy children frolicked through the grassy areas and played joyously with one another on the playground. Mothers and fathers walked with their little boys and girls along the pathways or enjoyed a wonderful picnic with the family and the whole scene just looked utterly ready to be ruined. But Doflamingo knew he wouldn't enjoy it; it was just too easy. These people would scatter like rats if he so much as looked at them the wrong way and that was absolutely no fun. He needed an idea; something simple and unexpected that would just spoil everyone's day until he could set sail and blow the place up for shits and giggles.

Just then he felt a small hand gripping his pants. The pirate looked down to see Law staring at the scene in front of him of a father gently tossing his little son in the air in a loving game of ups-a-daisy before glancing up at the captain with a hopeful expression on his face.

A light bulb suddenly went off in Doflamingo's head and he smiled sinisterly as he bent over and took a fist-full of the front of the kid's shirt in his hand. The boy frowned timidly since he wasn't sure what was going to happen next but was even less composed when he got a glimpse behind the pirate's glasses and saw the malicious gleam in the elder's eyes. Doflamingo suddenly turned his attention to the sky before quickly standing back up and extending his arm overhead, launching the kid straight into the air as the child let loose a long, drawn out scream of terror until he was nothing more than a speck in the atmosphere and the noise had completely faded away. The captain glanced over at the park and saw every man, woman and child gawking at the sky where the little boy had been thrown with horrified expressions and blanched faces.

_Perfect._ Doflamingo thought happily to himself as he hummed a little tune, waiting for the boy to start falling back to Earth. The kid's scream began fading in once more and the pirate extended his arms, using his devil fruit powers to slow the boy down so he didn't land quite so harshly. Doflamingo easily caught the child in his hands and was a bit surprised to hear boisterous giggling from the little boy when he was in the pirate's grasp. After all, it would have been nice to have a few tears and cries of dread from little Law so that Doflamingo looked like the psychotic kidnapper every parent dreaded, but crazy-sadistic bastard and crazy-sadistic bastard junior also had a nice ring to it.

"Again!" The boy called out happily to the pirate who stood stunned for a moment before letting another wicked grin onto his face.

Women and children screamed as the men hurried to take them away to a place less terrifying and Doflamingo just cackled as he enjoyed this small amount of chaos that was so easily ensued.


	8. Ticklish

"Do you think this is funny or something?" Doflamingo asked in an angry tone to the subject of his attention who was currently giggling uncontrollably. Law clasped his hands to his mouth in an attempt to calm his laughter but didn't succeed too well since the captain could still hear the little boy. Doflamingo folded his arms and narrowed his eyes dangerously, going over in his mind how exactly he was to handle this situation. He sighed irritably and decided to start things off with a lecture.

"Listen here you snickering little brat," The pirate began, stooping over to stare eye to eye with the kid currently sitting on the kitchen counter. He secured the little boy's chin between his thumb and index finger, making sure Law was looking right at him. When the kid made eye contact he immediately stopped laughing as he realized he'd already managed to dig himself into a hole before the pirate even continued. "If you think property damage is so hilarious then maybe I should graffiti the walls in your room and fill your bed with paint, see how you like it when your stuff is drawn all over." The man said low and angrily. The kid definitely hadn't done anything horrendous like what Doflamingo was threatening to retaliate with, but the pirate wanted to make sure that the boy knew there would be serious consequences now and if he ever pulled this stunt again.

Law sat frozen in fear as he understood the inflection of the captain's tone meant nothing pleasant was going to be happening any time soon.

Doflamingo let go of the kid's chin and pointed his first finger so close to the boy's nose that the tip just barely brushed against the end of it.

"If I ever see that you've decided to express your artistic ideas on the walls of my ship again you're going to have a lot more to deal with than a talking-to." The captain warned, lowering his index finger to point at the kid's belly button. "Understand?" The man finished, poking the little boy's stomach for emphasis. But instead of a simple affirmation from the child, Law's expression changed from fear to a grin as another bout of giggles escaped from his mouth. But he quickly composed himself once more and nodded immediately. Doflamingo cocked an eyebrow before frowning deeply. He reached out once more and poked the same place on the child's stomach, watching as the boy laughed again before clasping his hands over his mouth in an attempt to stop.

_Interesting._

This time the captain chose a different place on the kid's abdomen, poking him in his squishy side several times and causing the child to burst into laughter as he fell over on the countertop and tried to push the man's finger away.

"What the hell do you think you're doing giggling, you cheeky little brat?" The captain asked the child who was currently hollering with laughter as the man continued the work his fingers around the little boy's stomach and sides. Law kicked the pirate several times and tried grabbing his hand in order to push it away but was unsuccessful as he continued to squeal with amusement. "If you keep this up I'll have to punish you some other way." Doflamingo said as he grinned devilishly. He removed his hand and brought it up to the little boy's neck, trailing a few fingers where the kid's shoulders connected to his neck which elicited more snickers and giggles as Law continued to try and squirm out of the way of the fingers that were tickling him mercilessly. But just as Doflamingo was about to start using his other hand to deal twice the amount of "punishment" he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"Sir, what are you doing?"

The captain stopped and casually looked over his shoulder to find Vergo standing in the doorway. He resumed grinning and turned back to Law who was smiling in anticipation, his hands and feet poised to fight off the pirate's attacks once more. But when Doflamingo reached for the kid again he didn't start another one-sided tickle war, he grabbed the boy by his arm and lifted him from the counter before setting him on the ground and replying to his first mate.

"A new form of torture. It's actually quite satisfying when performed correctly." The man said as he stood straight again and began walking towards the exit. He stopped in front of Vergo and spoke again.

"Have the men finished cleaning the kid's finger-painting attempt from my walls yet?" The captain asked as he heard Law running over to catch up with him. Vergo scoffed and turned his attention down at the kid.

"Not yet, but I managed to hide the paint cans in a better place than the floor of some unlocked storage closet so we shouldn't have anymore incidents like this again." The first mate replied as he narrowed his eyes at the boy. Law side stepped to stand behind the captain when he deemed Vergo's expression too scary for him to deal with by himself. Doflamingo snickered lightly and continued on his way out of the room.

"I'm going to my room since the damned brat still needs to get the paint off the rest of himself." The captain said over his shoulder, motioning for the kid to follow as they both left for the pirate's room.

As they walked down the final hallway before reaching their destination, three men were currently set to work scrubbing the wall in between Doflamingo's and Law's respective doors which adorned the little boy's first endeavor to delve into his inner artistic abilities. The painting wasn't spectacular, but it definitely had a few recognizable characters in it. In other words there were two poorly designed stick figures drawn in only three colors. One was tall, but no taller than the kid was, while the other stick figure was short. Both were drawn in black but the taller had a few distinguishing features which called for different colors like yellow hair and a big pink jacket. The shorter figure came up to the where the taller's legs and body met and both seemed to each have linked a hand together which caused the shorter's arm to be disproportionately long. The last thing about each drawing which was notable was that the kid had made it so each of the stick figures were smiling happily.


	9. Unwanted Acquaintances

"Four plus three."

Two-year-old Law thought for a moment, mulling over the presented problem before giving up and using his fingers as a resource. He extended the correct number asked for, counted them up and said his answer.

"Seven!" He declared, smiling as he anticipated the other's reply. Vergo nodded his head when he heard the correct answer and turned another page of the newspaper he was currently reading. He agreed to help the boy with his math skills but wasn't about to give his full and undivided attention to the kid.

"Six plus five." The pirate said as he thought of the first two numbers that came to his mind and chose an easy operation. He wasn't an expert on parenting (quite the opposite to be precise) but figured Law was more advanced than most children his age and realized the crew would have to get an actual tutor soon if the kid kept up this current pace of learning. Vergo looked over his paper when the toddler was taking longer than usual with the equation and saw the boy staring hard at all of his outstretched fingers.

"Ten!" Law stated finally when he decided on an answer, smiling again as he waited to be assessed. The pirate turned back to his paper.

"Nope." Vergo replied, turning a page as he continued to multitask. "Just because you run out of fingers on your hands doesn't mean you run out of numbers." The first mate stated to the confused boy sitting at the same outdoor table he was at. Law contemplated what the pirate said deeply before he collapsed all of his fingers except one.

"Eleven!" The boy said when he fixed his answer, realizing he could start over on his hands every time the number went higher than ten. The pirate nodded.

"Twenty-seven minus twelve." The first mate stated, trying to give the kid something more difficult so he'd have to think about it for a while.

"Fifteen!"

Vergo lowered his newspaper and looked over the top at the expectant toddler. Did he just…? But his thoughts were easily interrupted when a certain pirate captain came bursting outside, fuming with rage.

"Oi! Crows nest! What the hell have you been doing? !" Doflamingo shouted angrily to the man who was supposed to be keeping watch all night. A loud thud was heard before a liquor bottle came falling and shattered on the ground. Vergo and Law looked up to where the captain was calling out to and saw the man stationed there frantically trying to get up and answer the man yelling at him.

"Sir! I've been keeping watch all night, sir!" A heavily drunken and slurred voice called out. Doflamingo's expression grew more aggravated as he growled low in his throat. It was obvious that the man was royally pissed off about something, but neither Vergo nor Law knew what. It must have had to do with the night watch being asleep at his post, but nothing exciting ever happened after dark anyways. However, it seemed the two sitting at the table were about to find out. The pirate reached up a hand and flexed a few of his fingers as he used his devil fruit powers on his subordinate, resulting with the man in the crows nest standing to his feet before tumbling over the side and landing harshly on the deck just like the liquor bottle had only moments before. Doflamingo approached the one on the floor and slammed a foot into the man's chest, eliciting a cry of pain from him as the captain grinned sinisterly, his expression darkening and making his features all the more terrifying.

"Then would you mind telling me exactly where we are?" He purred in a husky tone, twisting the foot he had on the man's chest and probably further damaging his fresh injuries.

"O-of course! We're on our way…" But the crew member wasn't given a chance to answer as the captain connected his foot with the man's jaw.

"Isn't it obvious? !" The pirate shouted angrily at his subordinate who was now cradling his mouth as blood seeped between his fingers. The man looked over at his maniacal captain's fearful expression and his face lost several shades of color. Doflamingo walked over and grabbed a fistful of the man's hair, lifting him to his eye level as his terrifying features never wavered. "I thought the lack of wind and sea currents would give you a pretty fucking good clue, but obviously you need some more help." He stated cruelly before turning away and chucking his subordinate over the railing, sending him far away from his ship and into the ocean. Sputtering and splashes could be heard as the drunken man tried to keep his head above the surface of the water when a large and dark shape suddenly appeared underneath him. Doflamingo, Vergo and Law watched as an enormous sea king surfaced right where the man had been treading water not even a few seconds ago, easily swallowed by the giant beast without even a chance to fight back.

"The calm belt." The captain stated with a displeased frown on his face. Vergo and Law turned to him as the pirate began approaching them. Doflamingo reached out a hand and grabbed Law by his arm before tossing him at Vergo. The first mate dropped his newspaper and caught the boy easily.

"Take the brat inside; it seems we'll be having a new guest shortly." The captain said as he looked out to sea. Vergo stood up with the kid in his arms and followed Doflamingo's gaze to see a ship approaching theirs. He couldn't see the flag yet but it looked as if the vessel was being pulled by two large serpents.

And Vergo instantly realized the reason for his captain's anger.

"Right away." The first mate said over his shoulder as he quickly headed inside the ship.

~0~

Doflamingo stood at the railing of his ship on the port side, entirely unhappy as to what situation that idiot night watchman had let his ship drift into. He knew sailing this way would probably put his vessel onto some weird current leading straight into the calm belt but hadn't acted on that thought and now here he was, standing face to face with the single most annoying woman in the entire Grand Line.

Scratch that; the most _bat shit_ woman in the _whole goddamn world_.

"Doflamingo! It's been much too long, darling!" The current empress of Amazon Lily called out. She was the one who had managed to snag the throne since Gloriosa (Elder Nyon) had abandoned her title and left the island almost three years ago while the next in line for empress was too young to accept the job. Her name was Nekosa (but fittingly nick-named Princess Nyan) and was a pain in the pirate's ass ever since they managed to cross paths several years ago.

"It would seem everyone's entitled to their own opinions." The captain replied with a bored frown to the woman who was now making her way over to his ship since a long gangplank had been placed between his and her railings which allowed for ease of access. Princess Nyan hopped down from the plank and hurried to the man standing out on deck, wrapping her arms around his neck and leaning in for a kiss.

Doflamingo quickly grimaced and blocked her advancing face with his hand before roughly pushing the woman away. It was very tempting to tighten his grasp on the princess and crush her skull between his fingers, but right now that wouldn't favor his situation since he was currently stranded somewhere in the calm belt. A whine came from the woman as she removed the pirate's hand.

"But my love, we haven't seen each other in years! You haven't come to visit, you haven't written…"

_I've avoided this place with all of my ability, I've shot down every carrier bird you've sent…"_

"Don't you think we should head back to the palace and get caught up with one another?" Princess Nyan asked as she inched closer to the man. Doflamingo stood his ground and continued to ignore her advances, reminding himself that not only would he be stranded without having his ship pulled back out to moving wind and water if he attacked the princess, but that he had also made a very annoying promise with a certain woman a long time ago regarding Amazon Lily and its inhabitants. Then again, she was dead which could call for some leeway…

"I'm not following you unless it's back to the Grand Line." The captain bit out as he continually refused to make eye contact with the woman. He knew that if he did he wouldn't be able to hold himself back since she probably had a pouting expression written all over her face.

Even the thought disgusted him.

"Of course I'll take you there, but first you have to come home with me!" The princess said, wrapping an arm around his and scratching the under part of his chin with the index finger of her other hand. "It's only fair, after all." She stated playfully before placing her free hand on the man's chest and leaning in to whisper in his ear. "I think one week should be equal payment."

Doflamingo snapped to attention at the prospects of having to spend seven days with this bitch and decided to aim for something more… manageable. He grabbed the hand on his chest and pulled the woman close in a mock show of affection, bringing his face so close to hers that their noses where nearly touching.

"I expect to leave for the Grand Line no later than tomorrow at sunrise." He stated definitely, leaving no room for oppositions in his tone. Princess Nyan's face turned a bright shade of crimson as the action caused her heart to flutter in ecstasy.

"Y-yes, of course!" She replied breathlessly. Doflamingo quickly let go and began heading for the crazy woman's ship, completely ignoring the fact that she had lost all feeling in her legs and had collapsed to the floor the moment he released his grasp on the princess. Her guards ran over and helped her up but it seemed she was too far gone in her thoughts to notice the other women who had come to her aid.

"And you had better bring my ship with us." The pirate captain called over his shoulder.

~0~

I have more written for this already but by the time I was beginning to wrap up this chapter I came to realize I had over 4000 words, so I split it into 2 chapters so I could finish it and also get something out for you guys to read.  
And how could I possibly ignore the chance to write a story of our Doffu having a lunatic secret admirer?


	10. Unwanted Acquaintances 2

It was plain and simple; Law hated being left alone. Vergo was mean and Doflamingo was crazy but they were still better company than being by himself and left to his thoughts in an enclosed space. For being so young the boy was already incredibly morbid in his subconscious mind and hadn't managed to keep up with his overactive imagination yet, meaning his own shadow scared him in the right environment. But he was still little and had some hope for growing out of this fear.

Law scuttled through the hallways of the ship after having escaped his room. He was curious since he heard someone was coming here and wanted to know who it was and if they were nice. He didn't fear people and was always excited to meet someone new. The kid eventually ended up in front of the door leading outside and stood on his tip-toes to reach the doorknob before he slowly opened it, making sure the coast was clear prior to dashing out and heading for the railing of the ship. He looked out and was surprised to see that they were currently docked at an island, but what was better was the unmanned gangplank leading straight into this strange and new place.

How could anyone pass up an adventure like this?

~0~

Doflamingo sat at the head of some grand table in an exquisitely decorated room as he was served anything he could ever desire on a plate. The food was freshly prepared and steaming, filling the room with decadent scents and aromas. The colors were magnificent, the spread was eye catching and it would have been a wonderful meal if the company sitting next to him had been anyone else in the world.

At this point he'd sit down with Dragon for a pleasant feast and conversation.

Princess Nyan hadn't stopped talking about her life and petty affairs to the point where Doflamingo had to tune her out as soon as she'd opened her mouth some few hours ago. Right now he was just focusing on the promised time of sunrise and the fact that he'd managed to persuade the crazy bitch to let him have his own room. The princess was very easy on the eyes and aesthetically pleasing, but all it took was a hint of her personality and the captain was pretty sure any man would run for his life. But the conversation seemed to dip into something the pirate felt was worth listening to and actually began paying attention.

"So, Doflamingo sweetheart, I heard a funny rumor a few months ago that brought so much joy to my heart I thought it'd beat right out of my chest!" The woman exclaimed happily, but the captain made no move to pause in his meal or respond since it never stopped her from plowing through a conversation before, after all. With hardly a pause for a possible reply from the man she continued. "I heard about a battle between the World Government and the revolution, apparently it didn't turn out too well." The princess said as she placed her elbows on the table and held her head in her hands before carrying on. "It seems there were many casualties. What a pity. But one person mentioned in these rumors rang a few bells in my head."

The pirate paused in his meal momentarily, knowing exactly who the princess was talking about and not liking where this story was going at all. He decided to pay it no mind and just continued trying to ignore the woman but it was impossible now.

"You have no idea how happy I was to hear that woman had died." She stated low and menacingly. Of course the captain had figured that information out even without her elaborating. When he was still in the revolutionary army he had been stationed with his childhood friend, Law's mother, and their ship had managed to get lost in the calm belt. They were found by Princess Nyan who immediately fell deeply in love with Doflamingo only to find out he was more interested in the other woman.

A woman's jealousy really knows no bounds.

"She really was no better than a common whore; a gnat in the presence of any female, but especially mine. That bitch wasn't worth it, you know. She wasn't worth you." The princess lovingly stated as she reached out a hand to try and run her fingers through his hair, but the man caught her wrist and held it tight.

"I don't care what you think." Doflamingo evenly stated before thrusting the princess's hand away from him and carrying on. "I don't care about your jealousy fits or your disgusting obsession for me, all I want is a way out of this sea and to be far away from your clingy paws." The captain stated menacingly, glaring at the woman before releasing her arm.

"All I'm saying is that I'm so much better for you! Why don't you just stop your silly adventures and come live with me?" The princess asked sweetly, giving the man a sincere smile but he had had enough. He couldn't stand being in this bimbo's presence and was ready to storm out of this palace, leaving a trail of blood in his wake as he spilled it from her and every opposing guard. To hell with waiting for sunrise; he could just steal her ship in the fray and drag his behind it out to sea then abandon hers as he set off for his next destination. The pirate slammed his hands on the table and stood, getting ready to attack the woman for saying something as stupid as quitting his life to live with her when the doors to the dining room suddenly opened and a familiar little boy came running in.

"Doffu!" Trafalgar Law called out as he scampered up to the pirate. Doflamingo only stared in utter surprise, completely caught off guard and not entirely sure what was going on as the boy approached the table and stared wide-eyed at all of the food there.

How on earth the toddler had managed to find him was baffling enough but then a thought suddenly came to the pirate's mind; Law and the woman who despised his mother with every iota of anger she could fathom were now present in the same room.

_This should be interesting._

"Oh how cute!" The princess cooed as she looked over the table at the boy. The pirate cocked an eyebrow amusedly since it was obvious she hadn't recognized the kid yet. He decided to wait and see how this played out.

"Is he your cabin boy? What's his name?" The woman asked as she motioned for the kid to sit across from her and next to Doflamingo. The pirate nearly choked as he suppressed a raucous laugh. The opportunity was much too perfect and the captain could only imagine how angry and beet red the woman would be if he told her what she wanted to know. The child pulled out his offered chair and climbed onto it before reaching for the most delicious things he could see. Doflamingo also sat back down and lounged casually in his chair, snickering devilishly and deciding to stir up a little chaos.

"Trafalgar Law." The pirate said, watching the woman's every move with a vigilant eye, waiting for her to snap when she recognized the familial name. For a moment nothing happened but that was quickly over when her expression changed from pleasant to livid in a split second as she lunged across the table. The boy didn't notice anything until Doflamingo caught the princess's arm when she was already reaching halfway across the expanse between her and the boy. Law dropped the grapes he had been holding out of fear and ducked in his chair behind the table when he saw her crazed expression. The pirate cackled with laughter before standing and twisting the princess's arm behind her head.

"There's no need to get so fussy; he's not mine." Doflamingo said with a sinister smile. The woman's facial features became less angered for a moment but quickly flashed back to their original intensity.

"But he still has that whore's blood in his veins!" She snapped back, glaring in the boy's general direction. Doflamingo just twisted her arm even further and leaned in closer.

"And you're not going to do a damned thing about it, understand?" The man pleasantly stated with his same fiendish expression. She stared back with the same intensity as well but eventually broke, tears welling up in her eyes before she got up and left the room. Doflamingo watched her go, thanking whatever divine providence that had brought the kid in and interrupted his and Princess Nekosa's reunion.

~0~

another part will be up sometime soon~


	11. Unwanted Acquaintances 3

The rest of the day had passed pretty uneventfully seeing as the only people from Doflamingo's pirate crew allowed on the island were the child and the captain himself because of the indigenous peoples' age old tradition. Even after all of these years the man couldn't understand why these people tried so desperately to keep the island filled solely with women. There wasn't a single sensible reason relevant in their ideals; it would never matter the gender, the race, the size, the age or any other factor of an individual which could identify an undesirable person. As long as there was free thought in the world criminals would be present in every society. Women, men, and anyone in between have the same chance of dipping into the darker side of life and living with considerably less morals than the average do-gooder when they're given the option of residing with the law or beneath it. There could never be such a thing as a 'perfect civilization' because you can't please everyone, no matter how hard you try. Their efforts only made the people of Amazon Lily seem like narrow minded idiots fearing life and everything it has to offer. But Doflamingo came to the conclusion that he would ignore those thoughts for now, opting to pay his subconscious no mind as it nagged him to go out and do something flashy in order to change the inhabitants' minds and just decided to deal with getting to bed for now. After all, what right did he have to disturb the flow? Especially when it was doomed to eventually change course?

He stood in front of the mirror to his shared bathroom with Law who was sitting on the counter as they both brushed their teeth. The pirate had told Princess Nyan that the boy was to stay with him throughout the day since her jealousy wasn't to be taken so lightly and he figured it wasn't beneath the woman to blow up his ship and subordinates along with it if it meant getting a chance to kill the child.

Along with consensual parenthood, women were another thing Doflamingo had yet to figure out.

The pirate spat in the sink and washed off his toothbrush before leaving it on the counter and heading into his room. Law followed suit soon after, landing on the ground with a thump as he had to drop down from the counter since he didn't have anything but gravity to help him. The toddler scuttled into the bedroom, immediately located the bed and quickly crawled up the small nightstand next to it in order to get to the top of the soft mattress. The little boy then dove underneath the covers in an attempt to conceal himself beneath the sheets but the lump in the middle of the bed gave away his brilliant hiding place.

Doflamingo narrowed his eyes as he pulled his colored shades off and mulled over the dilemma presented in front of him. He set the glasses down on the dresser and pulled off his shirt, flung the garment to the corner of the room as he prepared for a night's rest and approached the bed, staring down at the unmoving bump.

An idea suddenly came to the man and he snickered fiendishly at it, marveling at its simplicity and possible efficiency. The pirate sat on the edge of the bed and leaned backwards until he was lying across the comforter and on top of the little boy tucked underneath the covers. A cry of objection came from the child but Doflamingo made no move to budge.

"No!" Law called out from his very limited vocabulary.

"Are you going to get out?" The captain asked calmly, trying his best to get somewhat comfortable as the kid squirmed beneath him. Law began settling down as he pondered the question that was asked before answering.

"…No." The boy replied after a moment, stopping his struggling and waiting for what the man had to say back to him. Doflamingo cocked an eyebrow and frowned.

"No?" The pirate asked, giving the toddler a chance to change his answer.

"No." Law stated a little more firmly. The captain narrowed his eyes in annoyance at the child's stubbornness and repositioned himself so he had more of his weight on the boy beneath him.

"No, stop!" The kid cried out, trying with all of his might to push the man away but to no avail.

"Then get out." The pirate said as he boredly inspected his fingernails since his side of the argument required very little work. "You sleep on the floor, brat." The man proclaimed as he easily stayed on top of the struggling two-year-old.

"No, don't want to!" The child called out again, shoving the captain on top of him but making no progress.

"Oh, so you want to sleep with the scary lady then?" Doflamingo asked, the inflection of his voice suggesting that he would gladly dump the toddler off at Princess Nyan's bedroom door.

"No!" Law cried out, his voice straining to a higher pitch.

"Whining is only going to make your situation worse. Either you sleep on the floor or in her room. Which is it?" The man irrefutably stated. But Law obviously didn't get the message.

"I sleep with Doffu." The little boy quietly uttered as he stopped squirming beneath the pirate again. Doflamingo paused for a moment before exhaling deeply and grumbling a few profanities under his breath. But instead of threatening to toss the kid outside or something like that, the pirate sat up.

"You're not sleeping with me. You're sleeping on the floor." The captain ordered in a warning tone. He then stood up and began walking before continuing. "I'm going outside and when I come back you had better be fast asleep. On the ground." He said absolutely as he turned the knob to his door. Doflamingo then opened it and stepped through, shutting it behind him and leaving the boy alone in the room.

But the pirate didn't stray far from his door; in fact he stood directly outside of it with his back pressed firmly against the wall next to his room. He stood patiently, listening for any sort of movement occurring behind the door. It took a moment but the captain eventually heard a thud followed by tiny footsteps running up to the entry and stopping. The kid was obviously listening through the door and the man figured that if the boy was tall enough then he would have opened it and inspected the hallway as well. After a moment the little footsteps trailed back further into the room before the sound of a very small person climbing up furniture and hopping onto the mattress could be heard.

_That little shit._ Doflamingo thought as he rolled his eyes. Usually Law wasn't this hard to put to bed nowadays and the pirate had only mistakenly let the kid sleep with him once on account of him being too drunk and tired to do anything else. The captain made it a point to make that experience never happen again since in his book coddling was completely out of the question, no matter the toddler's age. The boy had wanted a few more sleep-overs after that incident but the captain managed to quickly cure him of that, but now it seemed Law was having issues staying in this new place. Of course, Doflamingo knew exactly who to blame for it.

Nekosa was too over reactive for her own good.

A sound of movement suddenly came to the captain's ear from just a short distance down the hallway and the pirate looked up, noticing a certain princess walking towards him.

_Speak of the devil…_The man thought as he narrowed his eyes. Princess Nyan stopped several feet away, realizing she wasn't exactly welcomed around here. The two stared at each other for a while before the woman spoke up and broke the tense silence.

"I've missed them, you know? Seeing your eyes."

Doflamingo suddenly remembered, and regretted, that he had left his shades just beyond the door he was standing next to.

Along with his shirt.

The captain paid her comment no mind and just broke eye contact with the woman, turning his vision to look at the wall in front of him instead. He hoped that would give the princess a clue that she was to get lost, but of course it didn't work.

"I really meant it," she started again, "every word I said. I'm in love with you, Doflamingo. Why won't you believe me?" The woman asked in a pleading tone. She took a few steps closer at which the captain narrowed his eyes and frowned deeper, causing his face to form a rather terrifying scowl. When he didn't reply, Nekosa continued.

"I love everything about you. I love your rudeness and callousness, the way you laugh and the authority in your voice." The princess took a few more hesitant steps which made Doflamingo's agitation continue to grow, causing him to bare his teeth and clench in fists tightly but she still persisted. "I love the color of your hair and your sense of style. I love your mood swings, your strength, your recklessness," Nekosa stood directly next to the captain, resulting in the man growling low in his throat as he forced himself to hold everything back while she unrelentingly persevered to push every one of his buttons, "I love you, I love every bit of you and I completely accept you."

Doflamingo was having a hard time keeping his fingers from wrapping around her throat and the man was amazed that this woman couldn't see the blood lust emanating from every pore in his body, regardless of how love-sick she is. Then again, she is an idiot.

"I accept that you're eccentric and vile and that you're a pirate," Princess Nyan quietly whispered as she then began slowly raising her hand, "I accept your past and the tattoo on your back. I even…" The woman was cut off just before she could gently place her fingers on the man's cheek when Doflamingo's hand shot out and wrapped around her mouth. It enveloped everything on her face from one of her ears to the other and from her nose to her chin, his hand squeezing the princess's jaw as he vaguely tried to control his temper.

"I thought I told you to _never _speak of that." The man seethed as he tried to rein himself in to a more manageable state of mind. But this woman's idiocy and persistence were just unable to be ignored now and the pirate had to do something about this or be forced to face it again sometime in the foreseeable future. Doflamingo looked straight into the princess's eyes with just about the most terrifying expression he had ever made, causing even someone as madly in love as Nekosa to become fearful while the man spoke.

"The fact that you were practically born into nobility and piggy-backed off of your deserting sister completely disgusts me." Doflamingo uttered in a low voice as clearly as he could, articulating his words slow enough so the princess could understand him as he continued to speak in an enraged tone. "That you even think you could begin to fathom what someone who wasn't given such a head start in life has gone through to become something in this world is revolting." The captain tightened his grip slightly on the woman's face, causing her to make a few muffled sounds that went unnoticed by the pirate.

"When you open your mouth and spout bullshit about love and acceptance it turns my stomach inside out and I'm reminded of how much I detest you." Doflamingo said as he suddenly let go of the princess and thrust her away from himself. "Go back to your close-minded life and ignore the world; remain blissfully unaware of everything else and leave real life to those who can make something useful out of it."

The pirate captain stood and waited after he finished speaking his mind, wondering if anything he just said would sink into that woman's thick skull. Nekosa had a hand on her cheek, obviously recovering from the pain of having her face squeezed by the violent man. She looked at him with a hurt expression but only received an angered glare in return. Tears gathered in the corner of her eyes once more before the princess dashed off, the sound of her sobs disappearing down the hallway. Doflamingo only frowned deeper, cursing her sensitivity before turning and reaching for the handle that led to his room. He opened the door and entered, greeted by the darkened area lit only from the soft glow of the moon shimmering through the large windows along with the peacefulness of night and as he headed further into the room the sound of Trafalgar Law happily asleep could be heard.

Happily asleep in _his_ bed.

The captain stopped walking just as he reached the large mattress, staring down at the little boy who was too far gone in the land of dreams to be disturbed by any sound quieter than a canon being fired in the same room. He studied the child's sleeping expression for a while, watching as the kid's chest continuously rose and fell before he realized how much he had calmed down after nearly killing the princess of Amazon Lily. Doflamingo grunted in amusement, wondering how something so seemingly small could have such an impact on him. Usually it took a bit of anger-release or some amount of violence to get him to settle down enough to be reasoned with after he managed to work up any amount of anger.

_The damned brat is really starting to wear off on me._ The captain internally thought as he knelt down next to the bed and held out a hand. He placed the back side of his index finger on the Law's cheek and drew it from just underneath the little boy's eye to his chin, trailing his digit across the child's skin and marveling at how soft and smooth it was.

Was he ever like this as a kid…?

The pirate scoffed when the thought entered his mind and lifted his finger away before placing his whole hand on the toddler's forehead. The temperature difference between him and the child was pretty substantial but that was probably because he was still walking around without a shirt on while the kid was tucked underneath several blankets. Doflamingo then pulled his hand to the top of the boy's head, feeling the soft hair beneath as it ran across his fingers.

No, there was absolutely no similarity between his and Law's childhood experiences. Doflamingo had never come to know his parents or even any person who might have taken care of him, if there even was someone like that. Ever since he could remember he had been on his own, having to steal and go against to flow of society in order to keep his life. The pirate always figured he'd been conceived by some drunken bastard and whatever drugged up whore that man had happened to pay for one night. He also figured the only reason his mother allowed him to live was to sell him at birth for a teener of cocaine and maybe even a bottle of whisky if she had any salesman capabilities.

And that brought his thought process right back to the tattoo permanently engraved in between his shoulder blades. Not many people knew about it and Doflamingo actually hadn't given the markings a single thought in several months. But now that it had been brought up once more by someone who was never even meant to know it existed caused the circle and four triangles to burn as they reminded the pirate of times he would gladly forget at anytime.

But Doflamingo had eventually come to accept many years ago that memories like those can't disappear. He just had to deal with the fact that at one point he was no greater than property bought and sold on the black market for the convenience of the rich with The Claw of the Celestial Dragon forever imprinted on his back.

The mark of a slave.

Even reminiscing of his shitty childhood caused the pirate to tense from anger and before he could clench his fist around Law's head and possibly crush his skull Doflamingo stopped thinking of his past, instead he decided to finish getting ready for bed and leave these thoughts for the furthest reach of his subconscious to keep.

After all of his nightly rituals were completed the pirate settled underneath the covers of his bed and shut his eyes, purposely forgetting about Law who was still fast asleep on the other side of the mattress.

~0~

Doflamingo slowly woke up and pried his eyes open after a decent enough amount of sleep had passed throughout the night. The pirate blinked a few times, focusing his eyes and remembering that he was in the palace of Amazon Lily and looking across the top of a very large and empty mattress.

The captain narrowed his eyes, knowing something was off about this scene before he realized a certain two-year-old was supposed to be somewhere underneath those sheets. The pirate instantly sat up and threw the covers back, revealing an empty bed and no Law.

_Shit._

Doflamingo climbed out of his bed and pulled on a robe as well as his glasses before striding over to his door and throwing it open. He briskly walked through the hallway and headed for the one person on this island he knew would present to be a threat to the child and cursed himself for not hearing her enter. But just as he was rounding a corner the pirate heard a chorus of giggling coming from one of the rooms he passed and stopped. The captain turned, considering something for a moment before walking over to the open door and peering through the entrance. Inside were three little girls with several articles of clothing and accessories in each hand surrounding another little girl who was dressed in a gown much too big for her, lots of big jewelry wrapped around her neck as well as her wrists and poorly drawn eyeliner, blush, and lipstick adorned on her face.

The pirate suddenly raised an eyebrow as he continued to look at the girl in the center when it suddenly dawned on him.

The one in the dress wasn't just some girl, it was his darling little Law.

Doflamingo felt like smacking himself in the face and walking away but the horrific scene in front of him just captured the entirety of the man's attention and his legs refused to take him elsewhere.

"Wow Hancock! You sure are a great make-up artist! I bet this kid would be really happy if he were your husband." One of the girls said as she continued to put frilly clips in the ignorant boy's hair.

"Ew, gross! He's totally not my type Sandersonia. Maybe if he had a brother or something." Hancock replied to her sister as she clipped a pair of earrings to the little boy's ears. Just as Doflamingo was about to leave and hopefully find some way to burn these memories from his mind Law suddenly realized someone was standing in the doorway. A broad smile spread across his face before he called out to the man.

"Doffu! Look, I'm pretty!" The little boy grinned proudly as he rattled the bracelets on his wrists while waving to the pirate in front of him. For once in his life the captain was completely and undeniably speechless. Not even a sarcastic quip passed his mind as he continued to be unable to rip his vision from the shocking scene before him.

~0~

AN: i always thought that Doflamingo had to scrape and crawl his way up the societal ladder in order to get to the place where he is today and despite being born with something handicapping his start in life the man is still one of the most powerful in the world. then later on in the OP manga i started wondering if maybe he had been a slave, broke out of his bonds and completely demolished the system that kept him chained with no free will, joined some organization that gave him a taste of true freedom/free thought/insight to organized chaos but when it no longer suited his needs he left the organization and became a pirate. then when Kaidou came in i wondered if maybe he was to blame for Doffu becoming a maniacal pirate. maybe he made deals with Doffu that required him to do things like destroying towns, starting slave trades, and creating massive amounts of weapons. maybe Doflamingo is trying to get out of that man's debts but eventually got consumed by them

i pretty much just gave away the entire plot to my newest story but if you want this paragraph in full fanfic form then check out "Domino Effect"


	12. Peanuts

Doflamingo sat outside at one of the tables on his ship with today's mail on the table top as well as a bowl of unshelled peanuts. The pirate leafed through his various letters, opening the ones with the most interesting senders on the envelope first and snapping peanut shells every once in a while to enjoy a snack. The mail delivery was fairly light this morning so he wouldn't be preoccupied by this daily task for too long and would be forced to find something else to do pretty soon. But just as the pirate slid his finger underneath the flap of a envelope in order to open another letter something tugged at the sleeve of his shirt. The captain looked over the side of his chair to see three-year-old Law staring intently at the bowl of peanuts before glancing up at the man with a hopeful expression.

"What?" Doflamingo asked even though the boy's intensions were practically spelled out in front of him. He'd never admit it, but the man was secretly trying to teach the kid to speak in full and elongated sentences. Law rocked back and forth on his feet for a moment before replying.

"I have one too?" The little boy asked as best as he could, stopping any movement in order to throw his brightest smile at the pirate. Doflamingo considered the action for a moment and decided to play along for a bit. The captain set down his mail and turned to face the kid.

"No, I want you to say 'May I please have one as well, sir?'" The pirate stated with a devious grin on his face. Law sucked in his cheeks as he was forced to wait longer to have what he'd asked for but easily complied with the man's instructions.

"May I please have one too, sir?" The kid asked once again, his anticipation and impatience growing even greater as time wore on.

"Hmm," Doflamingo paused in thought as he comically scratched his chin in a mock display of contemplation, "Say 'May I please have a peanut, Master Doflamingo?'" The captain said, elaborating what he wanted the boy to say once again. Law hopped from one foot to the other with a scowl on his face as his request was yet again put on hold.

"May I please have a peanut, Master Dofuammino?" The kid inquired once more, hoping to finally finish with the captain endlessly trying to fix his grammar. Doflamingo scoffed at the mispronunciation of his name and reached into the bowl, extracting an unshelled nut and dropping it in the kid's outstretched hands. Law smiled happily and thanked the man before setting to work trying to open it. The pirate figured that should occupy the boy for a while and returned to his mail but it didn't even take two minutes before he felt another tug on his sleeve. He set his mail down once again and looked over to see the little boy holding out the peanut for him to take back.

"I can't do it, you do it." The child stated. Doflamingo glanced at the peanut and crinkled his nose when he noticed it was covered in bite marks and slobber. The captain gingerly took the nut between two fingers and set it on the table then reached into the bowl and pulling a fresh one out. He snapped the shell and removed the two nuts but just as he was about to hand them to the kid a brilliant idea came to his mind.

"Take three steps back." The man said, smiling devilishly. Law frowned but did as he was told. As soon as he was done Doflamingo leaned over and place a finger underneath the kid's chin, tilting his head backwards slightly before sitting up in his chair once again.

"Now open your mouth and stay absolutely still." The pirate instructed as he waited for the boy to comply. Once Law had accomplished that small task the captain tossed the peanut into the kid's opened mouth and cackled when the snack made it into the opening. Law happily munched on the nut and tilted his head back once more.

"Again!" The boy happily requested as he left his mouth hanging open.

"Three more steps." The pirate replied as he held the nut in preparation to throw it. Law did as he was told and Doflamingo tossed another peanut into his mouth. When it made it in the kid took three more steps and opened his mouth once more.

The captain chuckled and shelled another peanut, realizing he had found something to preoccupy himself with.


	13. Rouge

Trafalgar Law wandered through the streets of some little village, stumbling around as he tried to find his way back to the ship or at least to a familiar person. The little boy had been walking with Doflamingo on a journey to go meet with someone but halfway through the trip the three-year-old found something much more interesting than walking down one of the streets to meet up with an acquaintance of the pirate. A butterfly had flown into the child's face, causing him to lose focus of his original goal and go chasing after it.

Little Law looked around the woodsy place he had meandered to and noticed a small cottage with smoke rising from the chimney. The child had been on the brink of tears for the past few minutes, fearing he'd be lost forever and never get to find his way back home so the sight in front of him was more than welcoming. The kid scuttled over to the building as quickly as possible and approached the front door. Just as he was about to raise a tiny fist and knock a thought suddenly came to mind.

What if the people in here were something scary? Like goblins?

What if they were witches who stole children and brewed them into potions?

What if they only ate bread?

Law lowered his fist, trembling a bit as he was conflicted between either getting help from the strangers here or getting lost. But just as the boy was about to chicken out and bolt from the scene the door opened. He expected some nasty creature to come out and gobble him up, but instead the toddler was met with a beautiful woman with a very round stomach. She had freckles dusting her cheeks and long, wavy, strawberry-blonde hair. When Law didn't flee for his life the woman let a warm and caring smile onto her features.

"Well hello there." The woman said kindly as she slowly knelt down. The toddler watched as she sank closer to his eye level, his gaze never leaving hers.

"My name is Rouge, Portgas D. Rouge. What's yours?"

~0~

He was going to kill him. Whatever excuse that damned brat made up was never going to be enough to get him out of the shit he had now gotten himself into. The next time Law acted on his own and wandered off Doflamingo decided he would leave the idiot at whatever port they were at and just sail off cackling with joy. After all, he would be free of that little turd, never having to deal with children again. But instead of a smile coming to his face the man just scowled deeper and continued along his path in order to find the little miscreant that presented so many problems in his life.

The pirate had gone about halfway through the meeting that was scheduled today between him and a client before realizing a certain annoying toddler was no where in sight. The man had internally cursed just about every swear word in his vocabulary and cut negotiations as short as possible while still coming to a deal with his business partner and left. As soon as he was out of that meeting the pirate had turned over just about every rock and every house in his way, looking for the child.

Doflamingo now strolled down a dirt road leading to a small house. Everything after this place looked to be vegetation so either the kid was hiding in here or in a tree with vicious animals snapping at his ankles as they tried to eat him for a snack.

The thought made the pirate snicker and if he ever stumbled upon a scene like that then he decided he would _definitely _sit back and watch.

The pirate approached the home and kicked down the door, strolling right in like he owned the place. The captain searched around a bit but found neither the home owner nor Law which caused his foul mood to grow even worse. The man scoffed and was about to leave when he heard a few sounds coming from out back. Doflamingo raised an eyebrow when the noises turned out to be a child giggling and a woman speaking. He caught the tail end of her conversation with who ever she was with and the topic piqued the man's interest in investigating what was at the back of the house even more. The pirate didn't even take a moment to figure out the best way to approach the two without looking like a trespassing madman and just threw the back door open, heading outside and finding where the sounds were coming from.

The sight in front of him was a beautiful young woman seated in a chair who looked to be several months pregnant and when the captain stepped outside she immediately jumped out of fright before fearfully staring at the pirate. But he wasn't currently interested in her, only of the little toddler who was seated on the edge of the woman's knees with his hands placed on her enlarged stomach. Trafalgar Law looked up to see Doflamingo, his expression brightening considerably.

"Doffu!" The little boy called out as he climbed down from the woman's lap and scampered over to the man. Portgas D. Rouge stared as the child ran over to the pirate, calming down after nearly having a heart attack when she realized the stranger wasn't an immediate threat. Law slowed as he approached when he noticed the captain's stern expression and realized he was, yet again, in trouble. The child stopped right in front of the man and awaited the reprimanding to start with his best attempt at a brave expression on his face. Doflamingo paused a moment before kneeling down and whacking a fist upside the kid's head. A few tears gathered at the boy's eyes from the pain but he stayed strong and held them back as he gripped the place he had been struck.

"You dumbass." The pirate said before placing his hand on top of Law's head and roughly messing up his hair. "If you ever get lost again I'm sailing away without you, understand?"

The toddler nodded quickly in affirmation and Doflamingo stood, turning his attention back to the woman. When he glanced her way the pirate could tell that even after the (relatively) affectionate display just shown to her between the little boy and intruding pirate, she was still fairly skeptical about the man. Doflamingo sneered and approached her.

"But then again, I am due to make an appearance somewhere rather dangerous soon and carting around a scatter-brained toddler just doesn't seem all that wise." The captain stopped just a few feet from the woman, a dangerous smile carving even deeper into his expression before continuing. "Maybe you've heard of it before," Doflamingo stooped over, draping an arm over the back of the woman's chair while placing his other hand on the immediate arm rest, "it's a small island just outside of the Grande Line. There's a little settlement there I'm interested in called Logue Town."

There was the slightest twinge of realization in Rouge's eyes and anyone other than an expert con would have missed it.

"Are you referring to the execution of Gol D. Roger?" The woman asked through gritted teeth. Whether they were clenched together from fear or anger, Doflamingo couldn't tell but he was resolved to find out. The pirate chuckled and removed his hand from the arm rest, holding it up to demonstrate it was empty before gently placing it on the woman's stomach.

"Aren't you addressing that man a little too formally?" He asked in a whispering tone. Rouge tensed, sucking in a breath sharper than normal and causing the pirate to chuckle louder than before. He slowly trailed his hand partway down her stomach, watching as the woman's apprehension continued to grow exponentially.

"You really should be more careful about what you say, even in front of an ignorant child like my little Law over there." Doflamingo said with a smile, "You never know who's listening."

The pirate suddenly stood up and began walking back to the house. He stopped just next to the child who was still standing in the same place he had been left at. Law had a look on his face that made him appear to be constipated and if the pirate didn't know any better he'd say the kid was judging him, determining whether this conversation was immoral or not. The captain turned back to the woman to see that she was visibly shaken, obviously waiting for what the man was going to do to her and the thought that his words (not threats, _words_) were having such an impact on her made his devious smile grow even wider.

"But like I was saying before, I'm heading off on a dangerous adventure and have suddenly acquired the need of a babysitter. What was your name again?" The pirate asked sincerely. She hesitated for a moment but figured it would be better to answer the man.

"Portgas D. Rouge." The woman replied without even a tremble in her voice. Doflamingo internally commended her for being so brave but decided to cut this little encounter as short as possible.

"D. Rouge, huh? Well Miss Rouge, I assume all of your necessary qualifications check out." The captain scooped Law into his arms and strode back over to his newly appointed babysitter. "Don't expect me back for another two weeks, but until then," Doflamingo stopped just short of Rouge and turned his attention to the kid in his arms. The pirate gently tossed Law into the air, causing the child to giggle happily before returning to the man's grasp. The captain then placed a kiss on Law's forehead and lowered him to be seated on the woman's lap.

"Until then I expect you to take care of this brat or your secret won't be so disclosed."

Doflamingo then reached into his pants pocket and extracted a card, handing it to the woman. She took it and noticed a name and number on it.

"Incase anything goes south." The man clarified. With that, Doflamingo turned on his heel and began walking away. Rouge looked from the retreating figure to the child on her lap, watching as the toddler placed his tiny hands on her enlarged stomach again with an expression of awe on his face. Rouge let out a sigh of relief she had been holding in for a while, glad that at least the boy in front of her was nothing like the man who had just left.

~0~

If there was one thing in her life she knew she wanted more than anything it was a child of her own. Rouge had dreamt of marriage and parenthood like most other little girls for as long as she could remember and the past few days had caused her to grow more anxious than anything for her precious baby to be born. The time she spent with Law would definitely not be forgotten anytime soon and the young woman was somewhat tempted to just ask Donquixote Doflamingo if she could keep the little boy. But of course she wouldn't, she knew the man wouldn't give the child up. No matter the façade he put up to any other person, Rouge could see right through it. She knew despite his harsh actions that the pirate had some amount of affectionate feelings towards Law and asking to take the boy away from Doflamingo would be like him asking to take her child from her and Rouge couldn't even comprehend that there was a choice.

Law sat on the edge of Rouge's knees with his palms placed against her stomach and a very serious look on his face. The woman smiled, realizing that since his time here the little boy had hardly even left her side. Of course she couldn't really blame him, it didn't seem like his captain had any motherly figures aboard his ship. But what also made her smile was the fact that at every moment he got, Law had to have a hand on her midsection. Rouge giggled before lifting a hand, placing it atop the child's head and running her fingers through his soft hair.

"You've been sitting on my lap for hours, Law." Rouge commented as she traced the bridge of his nose before lightly tapping the tip of her finger on the end of it. "Are you speaking with her?"

Law crinkled his nose from the action and looked up, meeting the woman's soft gaze.

"Yeah." He replied with a smile. Rouge chuckled again and resumed petting the top of his head.

"Well? What is she saying?" She tucked a few long strands of hair behind the kid's ears absentmindedly, waiting for a reply.

"It's a boy!" Law stated as if it were obvious. Rouge blinked a few times.

"A boy huh? Well, I never really thought of that." Truth be told, she hadn't. She always had a strong feeling that the little one inside of her was to be a girl and had only been thinking of female names ever since she learned she was pregnant. Law turned his attention back to her stomach and sat patiently.

"Well, if it is a boy what shall we name him?" Rouge asked openly. She considered her lover's name, Roger, but then again she hadn't even liked it then when she first met the man. She thought of maybe changing the female names she already had picked out into something more masculine but right now her top choice was Ann. Andrew maybe? Or Anthony?

"Ace, Ace! Do Ace!" Law called out, bouncing up and down on her knees from his excitement. Rouge stared at the little boy in wonder, suddenly remembering that Roger had mentioned the same thing just before he left. He told her that if he ever had a son he'd want the boy to be named Ace. Rouge considered the idea for a bit, trying to think of an alternative but the more she thought of it, the better it sounded.

"Alright." Rouge said with a smile. "If it's a boy I'll name him Ace and if it's a girl I'll name her Ann. How does that sound?"

Law responded with a bright smile and a few noises of joy, instantly excited to see the baby as soon as possible.

~0~

AN: idk why, but the biggest minor character tragedy i saw in op was that rouge never got to watch her son grow up and never got to be a mother longer than the 20 months she had with Ace, so i figured i'd let her be a mommy here :)

and yes, i had to have the obligatory bread joke in at least one story. i laughed so hard when i first thought of it that it took me a while to actually type it in

and thank you, lg. lg. log, for pointing out my jumbled up way of spelling Rouge (i spelt it Rogue... seriously brain?) and that Roger actually named Ace. obviously i need to either watch the anime or read the entire manga over again ;)


	14. Woes of an Expectant-Mom-Turned-Sitter

**AN: there's no order to these short stories**

~0~

Alphabet

Rouge shifted through the baby toys and activities she had managed to accumulate over the past few months, remembering each modest shop she had gone to in order find the things she liked. There were colorful toys and silly games along with several cute stuffed animals she couldn't help but purchase at the time. They were all meant for her child to come, but as the days progressed she began wondering why she hadn't brought them out for Law to rummage through. The mother-to-be emerged from her baby's room, carrying a box with several toys and games in it as she was excited to see the look on the little boy's face.

"Hey Law, I have something for you." The woman called out in a sing-song voice as she came into the family room. The toddler looked up from his newest drawing and his face instantly lit up, giving away how thrilled he was to look in the box while she set it on the ground. Law ran up and immediately began sifting through all of the objects, picking up a few and examining them before placing them back where he found them. Rouge sat in her favorite rocking chair, expecting that the little boy would be busy for a while. But just as she was reaching for her book on the table next to her chair, the toddler ran up with a small box in hand. He held it out to his babysitter with an expectant smile so Rouge accepted it, turning the thing over and looking at the front.

" 'Learning Your ABCs'?" The woman asked as she read the cover skeptically. Is this really what the three-year-old wanted to do? But as she looked up from the box, Law was still giving her an enthusiastic grin so of course she opened it and pulled out the large stack of flash cards inside before quickly leafing through them to make sure they were in order.

"Alrighty, first letter." Rouge announced as she pulled the first card out of the stack and held it up. "A. A is for apple." She enunciated as clearly as possible, pointing to the picture of an apple on the front. "Do you know anything else that starts with an A?"

Law thought the question over for a moment but answered fairly quickly.

"Ahoy!" The child replied. Rouge commended him for a job well done, not surprised that his vocabulary was going to include seafaring terms.

"B. B is for bear. Is there anything you know that starts with a B?"

This letter seemed a little tougher and Law had to stand in puzzlement for a bit. But nevertheless, he pulled through.

"Bar!"

Rouge coughed a bit, caught off guard at this answer. She then considered the toddler's upbringing for a moment, coming to the conclusion that the kid had obviously been on Doflamingo's ship long enough to know a few things he probably shouldn't. The woman took a moment to compose herself and decided to continue.

"Okay, C. C is for cat." Rouge considered her next question, wondering if she really wanted a reply but asked anyways. "Do you know anything that starts with C?"

"Oh! Captain! Captain!" Law answered straight away, hopping a bit when he knew he had the answer right. Rouge smiled and pulled the next card.

"D. D is for dog, but is there anything else?"

"Deck!"

"What about E? E is for elephant and what else?"

"Eggs 'n toast!"

"And now we have F. F is for frog and?"

"Fuck!"

Rouge choked on her next sentence, glad she hadn't been drinking anything since it would have been spat everywhere. The mother-to-be gave Law a horrified expression, genuinely surprised that the men aboard Doflamingo's ship were indecent enough to use that kind of language around a toddler. The kid in front of her gave her a confused look, wondering what he had done or said wrong. Rouge realized that since he didn't seem to have any sort of proper disciplinary figure aboard that vessel it was up to her to make sure the poor child didn't grow up with a mouth worse than the most seasoned of sailors.

~0~

Bed Time

The sunset scattered orange and red across the horizon, tinting the sky around as it slowly disappeared out of sight. The first day had been long and full of things to do so it was only natural to have bedtime be a little bit early since Law looked like he was about to pass out as he drew another picture in crayon. The child let out a strained yawn while trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes and as she watched, a small smile spread onto Rouge's face before she stood from her chair and headed over to the little sleepy head.

"I think it's about time you get to bed." She stated as she bent over and tenderly ran a few fingers through his hair. Law glanced up, his eye lids heavy with tiredness and drooping.

"Not sleepy." The toddler replied as he turned back to his artwork and continued. Rouge sighed but expected some amount of resistance so she began her counter argument. She knelt down to his level and spoke.

"But Law, you can hardly keep your head up." Rouge pointed out as she placed a hand on his back and gently ran it up and down.

"I can too." The little boy retorted as he sat up straighter only to slowly relax back into his slumped position, yawning once more. Rouge shook her head at his defiance before scooping the kid into her arms and setting him on her hip. It seemed to take the toddler some amount of time before he completely registered what was going on and once he did they were already at his bedroom door.

"No, not tired!" Law stated indignantly, fidgeting in the woman's grasp as he tried to escape to his drawings. Of course, it was a feeble endeavor and Rouge barely had to hold up her end of the fight.

"Silly, you're absolutely exhausted. It's time for bed." She entered the room and set the boy down on the spare bed, having already dressed it in sheets and prepared any necessities he might need at night. The expectant mother pulled out the only spare set of clothes she had at the moment that would fit the kid from a dresser, thankful that she had gotten the outfit some time ago even if it would be too big for her newborn for several years to come.

"Have to wait." Law announced from the bed, trying to scoot to the end and climb off. Rouge caught him before he could fall and plopped the little boy right where he had tried to escape from.

"No, Law, it's time for bed. Get your PJs on and get under the sheets, you have to sleep." Rouge said sternly, coming to the end of her patience as the evening wore on.

"No, wait, have to wait!" Law replied with a pout, frustrated since the woman wouldn't listen.

"Wait for what? What do we need to wait for?" She asked, wondering if getting an answer from him would put the kid to sleep faster.

"I hafta wait. Hafta wait for Doffu."

Rouge paused her reply, finally realizing what was going on here. Since he was so young the little boy has probably never had a proper sleepover before, not to mention he lived on a ship which meant everyone he knew was always in a single place and easy to find. Law obviously missed his pirates, making this a very difficult task tonight.

"Law," Rouge started calmly, gingerly laying a few fingers on one of the toddler's cheeks and tenderly tracing lines along his smooth skin, "you remember that Doflamingo has something very important he's doing right now, right? He can't be here now but wants you to be a good boy until he gets back, alright?" She tried her best to make her voice as soft and compassionate as possible but the news was still painful to hear and as soon as she finished the explanation, tears gathered at the corner of the toddler's eyes.

"But..." Law began only to be interrupted by a hiccup as trickles ran down his cheeks. A knot twisted in Rouge's heart and she pulled the child into an embrace, leaning his head against her chest and lovingly stroking his hair.

"Oh Law, he's doing something very important now and can't come but he misses you very much. He'll be back soon, just you wait." She reassured vaguely, hoping every night for the next two weeks wouldn't be this heartbreaking. Law clutched his tiny fists against her shirt, sobbing quietly.

"He has to, has to say goodnight." The little boy said, sniffling meekly and burying his head deeper into the fabric. Rouge lightly stroked his hair a few more times, humming a soft tune before separating them. She ran each of her thumbs underneath the child's eyes, catching the tears before they had a chance to fall and then spoke.

"He'll be back before you know it, okay?" Rouge smoothed back the toddler's hair, placing a kiss on his forehead then tracing her thumbs under his eyes once more. "And when he's back you have to give him a great big hug and a kiss on the cheek so he doesn't just disappear again." She continued with a smile, brushing her nose back and forth against Law's nose before using her fingers to tickle his belly. The toddler giggled happily at the attention, pushing the woman's hands away but smiling as if he hadn't been crying moments ago. Rouge leaned in to leave a million kisses on his cheeks, eliciting more boisterous laughter as Law attempted to fight against her only to end up losing as Rouge tickled and kissed him into submission.

~0~

Mother Hen

Rouge went about her daily tasks by tidying up her home a bit, attending to something on the stove, working in her garden or fussing with her baby's room. She enjoyed her simple tasks and reveled at not having to do much more. It wasn't because she was lazy or anything, but because the expectant mother would rather enjoy a simple life. For a while she'd had a job in town as a waitress, but after meeting Roger the man had left a large sum of money in her home without her even knowing. It had been several weeks before she found all of the cash stuffed in various places and she was grateful for it, seeing as she'd have a child of her own to deal with soon. She looked foreword to her baby's birth, anticipating every moment and excited to accept both the good and bad times that were to come.

But right now was just about the most darling of moments the woman could imagine. As Rouge continued throughout her conventional schedule she glanced behind her shoulder every once in a while to see Law copying her every move. The little boy would trot along behind her, stopping when she did and mimicking any action she took. When Rouge would close a forgotten drawer, Law would come along and open it just to close it as well. When Rouge pulled weeds in the garden, Law would follow suit as well.

The mother-to-be giggled blissfully, happy about the simple pleasures in life.

~0~

Artistic License

If there was something Rouge noticed more than anything about the kid in her charge, it was how much Law liked to color. Whether it was coloring books or plain paper, if anything in the world could get the kid to settle down it was a pack of crayons and something to draw on.

Rouge walked out of the little boy's room after having successfully put him down for a nap and immediately noticed a pile of papers Law had neglected to put away. She walked over and began gathering the sheets together in order to clean up a bit. One thing the woman would not tolerate was a dirty house.

Rouge tapped the sheets on her baby-bump in order to make the paper face the same way in a neat pile. She then considered something and decided since Law would be asleep for at least another half an hour that maybe she could draw a thing or two as well. The mother-to-be approved that option and set the papers down on her kitchen table with a handful of crayons before pulling up a chair and setting to work.

Most of the paper had been drawn on and as she leafed through looking for a clean sheet, Rouge noticed a lot of stick figure drawings where at least one stick-person was wearing a very large and bright pink coat.

The woman smiled and continued through, recognizing Doflamingo's insignia among other doodles of ships and people. But as she flipped through pages, Rouge began to notice another drawing pop up a lot as well.

On several pieces of paper was a recognizable everyday household food with a very large cross through it and every single drawing that depicted anything related to bread seemed to have a very negative connotation attached to it. Whether it was a loaf set on fire, run through with swords or hung at the gallows, one thing was for certain.

Rouge took the hint that she should stop making the little boy sandwiches for lunch.

~0~

Blitz

Thunder cracked across the clouds above, shattering the peaceful drum of rain as lightning flared and lit up the sky. Law jolted to attention in his bed, bolting to an upright position as the rain outside intensified and thrummed menacingly against the roof. The little boy glanced around, realizing it had only been the loud sound that had woken him. Aboard Doflamingo's ship he'd already been through many storms, some of which were much more threatening than this, so Law knew it wasn't anything to be afraid of and he should get to sleep again. Just as he was about to settle back under his covers and drift off into a land of dreams, another bolt of lightning scattered through the air and lit silhouettes up along his wall. The child ducked beneath the blankets, recognizing a few to be terrifying monsters and having to repeat over and over to himself that they weren't real.

That is, until something tapped several times on his window.

Law was out of his room before considering any alternative moves, scuttling as fast as his little legs would take him and disappearing into Rouge's room before he had the chance to learn that the terrifying noise had come from a few bushes outside. With the speed of a baby tiger, Law was climbing on top of the woman's bed and diving beneath the covers. He clung to his babysitter's side, fearing for his life as he clutched her nightgown like she could protect him against anything.

Rouge stirred, realizing there was a guest currently sharing her bed and tucked between her arm and her side as if they had been chased by hellhounds.

"Law? What's the matter?" The woman asked as a yawn escaped her mouth. The little boy only tightened his grip, refusing to let go. Rouge allowed the silence to continue for a moment, maintaining her consciousness and waiting for an answer. Just as she was about to speak up again and get him off to his own room, another piercing crack resounded through the night and caused both Law and Rouge to nearly jump out of their own skins.

And now the mother-to-be knew exactly what was wrong.

But instead of putting up a brave front and marching the kid off to his room Rouge only draped an arm over Law and drew him in closer. The toddler didn't need to be told that he was allowed to sleep in her bed for this one night.

~0~

Friends

Rouge gasped as an abnormally large kick connected to the inside of her womb, causing the woman to stop momentarily while washing the morning dishes.

"You sure do have your father's strength, don't you?" The expectant mother mused quietly to herself, placing a hand on her enlarged stomach before gently gliding it up and down. She took a moment to wait for any sort of aftermath and just as Rouge was about to get back to her duties, tiny footsteps came scampering into the kitchen. Law appeared next to her, holding his arms out and making little grunting noises in order to grab the woman's attention. Rouge glanced down, noticing the little boy wanted to be picked up.

"Not now, honey. I'm busy." Rouge stated, turning back to the sink. But just as she picked up another dish she had to set it down once more, clutching her stomach as another kick came from her unborn child.

"And you need to calm down too." The mother-to-be said off handedly, her breathing labored as she tried to regain her composure.

The urgent noises from Law came again, only this time much more demanding and as time passed he even began hopping up and down.

"Alright, alright." Rouge consented, bending over and picking up the toddler. She placed the little boy on the counter before returning her hand to rest on her baby-bump. Law immediately followed suit, touching both of his hands to her midsection and concentrating heavily. Rouge watched as the little boy slid his hands around for a bit until they came to a rest near her belly button. She wanted to ask 'what's up' but was cut short when movement came from her womb once again.

Rouge felt as the child developing in her brushed a limb against the wall of her midsection, marveling at how gentle the little one was now and if she didn't know any better she'd say it was her child's hands that were pressing against Law's through her round belly. A smile lit up the toddler's eyes and he moved his hands a little further up, somehow causing her child to follow soon after.

Rouge felt a glowing sense of pride swell inside her as she placed her free hand on top of Law's head, gently fiddling with his hair every now and again while watching the spectacle in front of her with amazement.

~0~

Defiance

"Law, if you don't come out this instant you're going to be in a lot of trouble, mister."

Silence followed Rouge's announcement and she placed her hands on her hips, determined to see this task through to the end.

"I mean it; I'll take away all of your crayons forever."

The expectant mother's ears suddenly perked up, catching the slightest of noises that sounded suspiciously like a gasp. Rouge grinned to herself before quietly heading towards the direction of the noise, realizing that the toddler had to be behind the couch. She approached the front of it and waited for any sort of movement to occur. When nothing happened, she spoke again.

"I'm going to count to three and if you're not out where I can see you there's going to be some serious consequences."

She paused for a moment, giving the kid plenty of time to surrender before things could get ugly. Unfortunately, she was only rewarded with silence.

"One." The woman began as she tapped a foot, watching out for any signs of movement. Again, nothing.

"Two." Her voice became more demanding and authoritative, but still, nothing. She opened her mouth to say three but was cut off when her little charge suddenly dashed from behind the sofa and began streaking a b-line for the back door.

Rouge sighed as the little boy attempted to flee for the outside world in nothing but his birthday suit but chased him down and caught the toddler before he took even a single step outside.

"No!" Law called out as his plans for freedom were thwarted. Rouge carried him in her arms straight back into the depths of her house, holding against the struggling child.

"I don't know what you're so upset about, Law. It's just a bath." The mother-to-be stated as she brought him back into the bathroom, closing the door this time to make sure the little boy didn't escape again.

~0~

New Pet

Law had been playing outside for the majority of the day, exploring all of the places he was allowed to go and playing with whatever he could find. But as he wandered through the woodsy area behind Rouge's home, he found something extremely intriguing. The little boy stared at some strange animal that he had never seen before as it clung to the side of a tree, wondering what it could be.

Well, to be more precise, Law had seen things like this before but they were all pretty small while this one was massive. The toddler stretched out his hand and gently placed it on the animal, feeling the hairs on its back as he stroked it. When the thing didn't run away, the little boy smiled happily before taking it in his arms and carrying it back to the house.

As he ran, the animal squirmed in his grasp, tickling him with its fuzzy legs and causing the child to giggle cheerfully.

Law went inside and decided to play with his new fuzzy friend in the living room, placing the creature on the ground before going over to his box of toys and pulling a few things out.

The front door suddenly opened and Rouge came inside with her sun hat and gardening gloves on, intent on getting something to drink after working in the yard for quite some time. Just as she began crossing through the living room on her way to the kitchen she was stopped by the excited toddler.

"Looky what I found!"

The expectant mother glanced away from the child, searching for what he was pointing at and when she found it she screamed.

Sitting in the middle of her living room was the biggest tarantula she had ever seen, its legs thick and full of hair while its abdomen looked to be the size of her two fists put together.

~0~

Shopping

Rouge strolled through her neighborhood grocery market, picking up her weekly supply of food and glancing around at all of the different kinds of items. Law also tagged along with her, happily following and staring at all of the labels and pictures on the boxes and cans in the store. He liked going up and down the aisles looking at all of these designs but didn't particularly enjoy the produce department so when Rouge was there looking for fresh fruits and vegetables, Law decided he would explore the rest of the store and come back to her later.

Of course, that was fifteen minutes ago. Now that he was finished with his thorough investigation of the store the toddler just wanted to find his babysitter. The little boy went dashing up and down the aisles for the second time, looking every which way for the woman and panicking internally as he thought maybe she had left him here forever.

The notion terrified the child more and he moved even quicker as his breaths became increasingly labored between all of the running and the tears he was holding back. Law stopped as he wound up in the produce department again, still no Rouge in sight. He stood for a moment, contemplating what he should do now only to realize that he had no idea.

Law grabbed the hem of his shirt as he continued to stand in one place and slowly turn in circles, still looking out for the woman. He clutched and bunched up the fabric, worrying it between his fingers as the worst possible scenarios kept coming to mind.

The little boy choked back a sob, his eyes already red from holding in his tears but still no Rouge in sight. He brought a hand up and wiped the streams that were now trickling down his cheeks away, deciding to search the store one more time before he completely lost all hope.

Just as he was getting ready to dash up and down the aisles again, a familiar figure caught his eye as she turned a corner. Law did the first thing that came to mind and ran as fast as he could to Rouge who just looked at him with a relieved expression.

"Mommy!" The little boy called out as he suctioned himself to her leg with a tight hug while his tears refused to stop making a mess of his face.

"There you are! I've been looking all over for you." Rouge said as she bent down and lightly returned the embrace. Law wrapped his arms around her with all of his strength, sniffling lightly after the scare.

~0~

Sweet Sorrow

Rouge closed the children's book she had been reading, setting it on the bedside table before lightly placing a kiss on the sleeping boy's forehead. She had just managed to get him to fall asleep for the night so she took the utmost care to slip as silently from the room as possible, quietly closing the door behind her with a soft click.

It had been two weeks since Doflamingo left the toddler in her care meaning it would be any day now that the captain would show up to take him back. Rouge tried to imagine what the house would be like with the little boy gone, but it was hard to think about. The woman considered the idea that maybe he wouldn't come back at all but knew deep down that was the furthest thing from the truth. She subconsciously placed a hand on her stomach as she turned the corner to the living room only to be met with a surprise. Rouge gasped from fright when she noticed something large and pink occupying her sofa, bringing a hand to her heart as if attempting to stop it from flying out of her chest while it was beating like crazy.

"Good evening to you as well, my dear." The pirate captain softly stated with a chuckle, taking a sip from a tea cup. "I took the liberty of letting myself in and feeling as if I'm at home, I hope you don't mind."

Rouge let out a small breath, minding it very much but deciding not to comment on it.

"Well," Doflamingo set the cup down on the table and reclined into the couch. "Onto matters at hand. How's the brat doing?"

Again, Rouge had an opinion about the man's mannerisms but didn't comment on them since she'd be fighting a losing battle, so she decided to just keep up a pleasant yet short conversation for the moment.

"He's sleeping right now and was very well behaved for these past two weeks."

Doflamingo snickered at that, causing Rouge to raise an eyebrow in confusion. When the pirate calmed down, he addressed the woman's puzzlement.

"Next you're going to tell me you got him to eat bread and complacently take a bath." The captain quietly laughed again, lifting a hand to his face and wiping a few fingers just beneath his tinted glasses. Rouge smiled lightly at that, glad the man also knew the little boy's quirks.

"Speak of the devil, would you mind getting the little pest? I have a tight schedule to keep." Doflamingo stood after his request and began heading for the door. Rouge obliged easily and headed back to the toddler's room to fetch him. But as she heard the handle of her front door turn, a question came up in her head.

"Mr. Doflamingo, wait."

The captain stopped in his tracks and turned slightly towards the woman.

"Just Doflamingo is fine, no need for formalities."

Rouge nodded before continuing. "On your trip you said you were headed to Logue Town, correct?"

The pirate remained emotionless but responded with an affirmation. Rouge bit the bottom of her lip lightly, wondering to herself if she really wanted to continue with her question. She wasn't sure if she was ready to hear the answer quite yet. The woman hadn't even picked up a newspaper since the day of Roger's scheduled death, nor had she even looked at any of the tabloids in town. Whenever she heard a conversation involving The King of all Pirates himself, she shut out their voices and briskly walked away.

"It was a flawless execution."

Rouge glanced up, not even realizing she had taken her eyes off of the captain. The woman placed a hand on her enlarged stomach, her eyes misting over at the information.

"But until the very end, the man smiled as if nothing could go wrong in the world."

The mother-to-be blinked a few times in surprise.

"He said there was a treasure that surpassed all other treasures out there. He may have even started some sort of great pirate movement."

Rouge smiled at the thought, quickly thanking the man before turning away to complete the task she had first set out for.

That small bit of knowledge was simple yet extremely reassuring and it made her glad to know that Roger had been true to himself until the end.

The woman approached Law's room and when she entered he was still sound asleep, too tired after all of his activities for the day and snoozing blissfully through the night. Rouge smiled warmly before gently seating herself on his bed and bringing a hand up to smooth the hair from the toddler's forehead.

"Law. Law, someone's here for you." The mother-to-be whispered, watching as his eyes fluttered open. "Law, Doflamingo is here. Come say hello to him."

At the mention of the pirate's name, the little boy began sitting up and sleepily attempting to crawl out of bed. Rouge scooped him into her arms and held the toddler close, trying her best to make their final embraces last as long as possible. She stepped outside and noticed the captain standing several paces from her home and facing the ocean in front. Law seemed to be on the cusp of falling asleep again because even when Doflamingo turned to face the two approaching the little boy didn't stir.

"Well would you look at that." The captain stated casually as Rouge stopped a few paces away. "You're a natural at this."

Rouge blushed lightly at the unexpected comment and smiled politely at the man.

"Please don't poke fun at me." The mother-to-be requested as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"But I mean it." He replied with what looked to be a genuine smile. "In fact, I'd be more than happy to welcome you aboard my ship, no strings attached."

Rouge balked at the offer, turning the thought over and over in her head. But the more she thought about it, the more dangerous and disadvantages the suggestion sounded.

"No, thank you." The woman stated with a shake of her head. "No offense, but I'd rather not raise my child in such a treacherous environment."

Despite how much Rouge wanted to be near the little boy she had grown so attached over the course of two weeks, she refused to let her own child grow up the same way. No matter how much she didn't like the thought and how much she wanted to change Law's upbringing she had to come to terms that he didn't belong to her. But of course, she was always willing to try.

"However," the mother-to-be began as she traced a few fingers along the boy's scalp. "I would be beyond grateful to look after Law in your stead."

Doflamingo dropped his grin instantly, blowing off the idea before he had any chance to ponder it. Rouge knew the answer the moment her question left her mouth but thought she'd give it a shot anyways.

The woman looked down at the little boy once more, noticing he was back to sleep again without a sound. She gave Law another quick kiss on the forehead, whispering a soft farewell before handing him off the captain. But as she began pulling Law away from herself, the toddler suddenly tightened his hold on her, causing the expectant mother to halt her movements. The little boy snuggled in closer, mumbling next her ear.

"I love you."

Rouge's heart skipped a beat before a pang ran straight through it. The mother-to-be firmly secured her side of the hug as well, allowing a single tear of sadness to fall down her cheek as she bid her final farewell.

"Yes, I love you too."

Several moments passed until Rouge pull away and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Bye bye Ace." Law stated as he softly pat her belly. The mother-to-be smiled as she felt a bit of movement come from her womb, taking that as her little one also saying goodbye.

Rouge finally disentangled herself from the boy and handed him off to the pirate who took him gently into his arms.

"Remember what I told you on our first night together." Rouge proclaimed with as much of a conniving grin as she could muster. Doflamingo stared at her in wonder for a moment until Law suddenly remembered what the woman was talking about and climbed a little higher in his captain's arms. The toddler then placed a kiss on Doflamingo's cheek before wrapping his arms around the man's neck in a big bear hug.

The pirate was completely stunned, his arms suspended in front of himself and locked in place as he tried to register what exactly was going on. He looked down at the child currently dangling from his neck in absolute bewilderment for a moment but made no move to pull him away. Slowly but surly, Doflamingo placed a hand squarely on the kid's back before turning his attention to the beaming woman in front of him.

"What?" He asked a bit defensively. Rouge only giggled. The pirate frowned and returned to his current schedule, remembering he needed to board his ship and set sail now if he wanted to get to his next destination on time.

"Thanks for looking after the kid." Doflamingo threw over his shoulder as he turned towards the road that led to town.

"Anytime." Rouge replied as she watched them leave.

"And Doflamingo!" The woman called out when a thought crossed her mind. The pirate glanced over his shoulder in acknowledgement. "Don't say such terrible things around the poor boy!"

The man laughed but continued on his way, making no promises to that.

"And read him a story every night! He needs to learn!"

The pirate raised a hand, signaling that he heard but wouldn't turn around.

"And watch out so he doesn't get lost!"

Now the pirate stopped and spun around, calling out a sarcastic "Yes, _mom_." To Rouge before returning to his path. The mother-to-be watched as the two departed, waiting outside until they were out of sight beyond the palm trees and various bushes then waited a bit longer.

"Goodbye." She whispered one last time as she was left alone on her own little corner of the island.

~0~

AN: umm... does this suffice as a good apology for neglecting this fanfic for so long...? i got several readers wanting some mommy-son scenes between Rouge and Law so i thought 'what the heck, why not?'

plus im curious, what's your favorite short story in this chapter?

and is that the sweet call of summer? the decadent aroma on sunscreen and bugspray? the fresh and inviting air of extended vacation filled with nothing but sun and internet...?  
lol, no, it's not. not yet anyways. this week is my last week in school until september when i'm finally a ~senior~  
which also means a bajillion tests and final projects. wish me luck, because every higher power known and unknown to man knows im going to need it.

p.s. 6000+ words = longest chapter i have ever written. BOOYA! (AN included in this number)


	15. Frozen

Little Law gawked at all of the sights around, stupefied by everything he saw. It seemed the town the Doflamingo pirates had stumbled on now was the perfect trap for any eager child.

Bright colors and funny designs encompassed every store sign and shop window that the captain and little boy walked by, calling out to Law and seeming to physically draw him into each establishment. As the two walked by they passed ice cream parlors, candy shops, toy stores, fun houses, amusement areas and even a theme park designed specifically for kids. The four-year-old was practically shaking with anticipation to be able to enter even one of these stores and that's why Doflamingo just kept walking. The last thing he wanted to deal with at the moment was an overzealous child as they strolled through kid-heaven.

But, he did make a mental note to stop in _one_ store on the way back.

However, all of the distractions around were making it extremely difficult for the man to gain any ground without completely losing the little boy on the streets. Even after the third time of threatening to leave him behind, Law was still finding it hard to keep pace as he usually did, instead deciding it was much more rewarding to stare at everything around.

Just as the captain was about to turn once again and unleash his fury on the kid, something in front of him caught his eye. The man considered his initial policy when dealing with the brat, recalling that rewards were only meant for special occasions after the boy had done something exceptionally well but decided today would be his one exemption to the rule. When Law caught up with the man once again, Doflamingo reached down and snatched the little boy up by his arm before hoisting him into the air and perching the child at his side with an arm underneath for support.

"You're particularly scatter-brained today, brat and I don't want to deal with your squirrely tendencies so I'll make this simple." The man then pointed out the sight that had given him his new brilliant idea, causing the boy's eyes to brighten considerably as he picked out the small ice cream stand the captain was currently pointing at. "I will buy you one of those so long as you quit acting like a mentally handicapped toddler. Capiche?"

The little boy agreed quickly and enthusiastically, struggling in the captain's grasp in order to be let go of and investigate all of the flavors. Doflamingo assented and set the child down and as soon as his feet hit pavement, Law was dashing for the stand.

The only problem with this plan seemed to be the whole height factor and as the kid approached he realized it would be extremely difficult for him to see into the freezer-cart to look at all of the different frozen treats. Law hopped a few times, reaching for the rim of the cart until he finally took hold and began slowly pulling himself up for a better view. But just as he managed to get his tiny head to poke over the top, Doflamingo came up behind the kid and grabbed him just under the arms, lifting him once again into the air then stopping and suspending him when he was far enough up to see everything.

Even though there were only eight flavors, the variety was overwhelming since Law couldn't remember ever being allowed to choose whatever he wanted. The giant tubs sitting just beyond glass were all inviting and looked delicious which prompted the little boy's next answer.

"All of them!" Law eagerly stated as he continued to glance indecisively at everything.

"No, one of them." Doflamingo retorted.

"One…?" The kid looked over his shoulder, searching for a different answer from the captain. Doflamingo stood strong for a moment but eventually gave in.

"…Fine. Two."

Law turned back to the cart once more, still not quite sure what to do about his choice.

"If you don't pick soon we're leaving and not getting anything." The captain stated impatiently. The boy panicked for a moment, quickly looking at everything once more before coming to a decision.

"White 'n green!"

Doflamingo ordered vanilla and mint chocolate chip on a cone for the kid, setting him back on the ground and handing the treat to Law when it was finished. The little boy thanked him enthusiastically and focused solely on eating and following after the captain.

~0~

Law sat on a park bench, hardly even finished with eating one of the scoops on his cone. Doflamingo had left him there for the time being, saying he'd be right back and that if the little boy left his spot for any reason the captain would take away his ice cream and he'd never get to have any ever again.

It still amazed the man how simple it was to threaten a child to follow orders. It didn't take drastic measures like torture or pain since something as easy as taking away the kid's dessert seemed to be all it took to flip Law's world upside down.

The little boy happily sat there, his entire focus on the ice cream until he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. Law glanced up to see a little girl with large glasses who looked younger than he was staring at his treat, practically drooling over it. The boy stared right back at her until she realized it and glanced up. The girl crept a bit closer before speaking.

"I have too?"

Law blinked a few times before realizing she was referring to his ice cream cone. He looked down at the treat and suddenly realized the thing was now dripping all over his hand and if he didn't eat it quick enough it would be wasted.

"Sure." He replied as he patted a free space on the bench with his clean hand. "Sit here."

The little girl's face lit up with excitement as she quickly went over to the bench and began attempting to climb up. Law had to help a bit, grabbing her shirt and pulling her up until the girl was seated next to him.

"I'm Law. What's your name?" He asked as he held the dessert between them.

"Tashigi." The little girl replied as she pushed up her glasses and reached for the cone. The two sat there contently, sharing the ice cream like good friends.

~0~

Doflamingo strolled out of the building he had been in for the past fifteen minutes, focusing wholly on getting the brat and getting back to his ship. The business transaction had been a piece of cake as his boss had promised and now he was walking away with a briefcase and more money than initially agreed upon.

Of course, Kaido would never get to hear _that _part of the story.

As the captain descended the steps in front of the door he'd just walked out of he could see the park across the street where he'd left Law, noticing the little boy had a friend sitting next to him and the two were sharing his ice cream.

_Only four years old and he's already a stud._ The captain thought with a quick snicker when he noticed the child sitting next to the kid was a little girl. Doflamingo was about to cross over to the park and retrieve his brat so they could make their way back to the ship when a figure suddenly stepped in his way. The pirate frowned, not partial to being blocked off from his path by just anyone but when he noticed who it was that was in front of him the captain allowed a wicked smile to carve into his features.

"Well what do I owe the pleasure, Commodore Sakazuki?"

The Marine officer stood with his same glowering features, allowing every emotion of contempt he had for the pirate standing in front of him to show through his eyes.

"Nothing, Pirate Captain Donquixote Doflamingo; just a short trip to a little place I like to call Impel Down."

Doflamingo cackled at the retort, his smile increasingly becoming more menacing as time passed. The pirate slowly stepped down the last few stairs to stand on the same level as the Marine officer in front of him, staring down at the man since he was still a head taller than the other.

"And it's Rear Admiral now, scum." Sakazuki stated with a small bragging grin tugging at a corner of his mouth.

"Oh my, time certainly has flown since the last time we met. Of course, I should have guessed that you've moved up the ranks with how brown your tongue is." The pirate replied, causing the Rear Admiral to drop his expression back to one of pure scorn. "After all, kissing ass is all you higher ups are good for, no?"

Sakazuki lost a bit of his temper at that reply, transforming his fist into a glob of magma before sending it straight for the pirate's nose. Doflamingo easily caught it through, holding it steady before commenting.

"Come now, you'll have to do better than that. After all, Haki is one hell of an ability to know."

The Rear Admiral snorted at that, his frown turning into a scowl as he used his Devil Fruit powers to also change his other fist into another glob of magma. Doflamingo watched as the molten rock dripped from the Marine's hand, cooling down as soon as it left the man's body and dotting the cement underfoot with oddly shaped rocks.

"Now, now; is this really what two grown men should be doing in front of a park filled with innocent bystanders?" The pirate asked, allowing a moment of high pitched laughter from children playing to fill the silence shortly after he spoke. The Marine officer seemed to consider this thought for an instant but quickly pushed it aside to allow his other fist to come soaring for the captain's jaw. Doflamingo easily dodged the attack and was dashing around the side of the building away from the park before the Rear Admiral had a chance to continue, but it didn't take long for the two men to be facing each other once again.

"If I didn't know any better I'd say you were trying to lead me away from something." Sakazuki stated with a nasty grin, lunging for the pirate once again. Doflamingo never let his own crafty expression falter as he dropped the briefcase and blocked a few swift attacks before catching the other man's right hook in his hand.

"A bereaved lunatic like me having something worth my time to protect…" The captain visibly thought the idea over for a moment before laughing at the very consideration. "I guess when that day comes Hell will truly freeze over." He cackled heartily at that and shoved the Marine away.

Sakazuki returned to the fight immediately, continuing to push the captain back with a few well-aimed attacks straight for his jaw, chest and gut. Doflamingo maintained his plan to retreat all the while, reminding himself it was in his best interest to lead the Marine well and away from the park before allowing things to turn any more ugly than they already were.

Just as that thought ran through his mind the Rear Admiral sprang an unexpected attack, catching the pirate off-guard with several violent jabs aimed for vital areas but only meant to divert the captain's attention from the other's initial goal. Sakazuki secured Doflamingo by one of his wrists suddenly, heating up his Devil Fruit powers to unimaginable temperatures and managing to burn through the pirate's Haki before smashing the limb against the wall of the building behind them. Doflamingo grimaced at the pain when his arm was stuck forcefully to the cement, wondering if the burns beneath the rock encasement were as bad as they felt. The Marine removed his hand from the lump of cooling lava and clamped it firmly around the captain's throat as the same malicious grin resurfaced onto his features.

"Don't lie to me, scum." The Marine tightened his grip before the pirate had a chance to grin any wider than he was. "I know a poorly thought out plan when I see one." Sakazuki leaned in closer, his expression becoming more calculating and cruel. "So tell me, what bitch did you fuck that would force you to carry around a crib-midget?"

Doflamingo snickered darkly for a moment as the glare of the sunlight hit his tinted glasses just right, allowing for a glimpse at his terrifying features.

"Your whore of a mother. She told me to say hello."

The Rear Admiral didn't give his adversary any time to react to his own line; instead he sent a powerful molten fist straight for the pirate's nose once again as his grip tightened considerably on the captain's neck. Doflamingo managed to jam an attack right into the other's elbow, exploiting a pressure point which allowed him a fraction of a second in order to get out of the way. He managed to dodge the Marine officer's assault before it had a chance to leave some permanent damage to his face and also activated his own Devil Fruit abilities.

Near-invisible strings extended from the tips of his fingers, wrapping around the Rear Admiral's arms, wrists and neck which successfully held the other man in place just as he turned towards the pirate again in order to take out his aggression on the captain. Doflamingo then used his trapped arm to break the rock that was encompassing it, smashing through the mostly cooled igneous and tearing apart his already ruined skin. Blood streamed down the pirate's hand from the freshly torn burns, but he paid it no mind and focused all of his attention on the man in front of him.

Sakazuki definitely had the power to get out of these restraints, but then he also needed to watch out for how razor-sharp they were, meaning he had to wait for an opportune moment.

"Well, isn't this embarrassing?" Doflamingo mused with a devious grin while Sakazuki just glowered at him. "Restrained by the very scum you swore to protect this fine world from."

The Rear Admiral stayed silent, not allowing his anger to get in the way this time.

"But then again, maybe this is true justice? I guess it all depends on one's point of view and what someone values as being right or wrong." The pirate turned his attention from the Marine officer over to his discarded briefcase, flicking a finger on his bloodied hand and bringing the case over to himself. "However, I'm not here to discuss the ethics of your corrupt organization; I just want to get back to my ship." Doflamingo stated before releasing Sakazuki's arms and wrists from their bonds but also making sure to keep an invisible string around the man's neck as he held the briefcase between himself and the Marine officer.

"There's really no point to this violence, wouldn't you agree?" The pirate asked with mocking sincerity. All he got out of it though was a deathly glare from the other man as he still tried to calculate the best way out of this situation.

"I offer you this and my silence of the events that have transpired today. You can have what I've been sent to pick up and my word as a gentleman not to say anything about the events that took place between us so long as you let me peacefully leave this island."

The Rear Admiral stared at the other a moment before replying.

"And why would I trust you. No, why would I even do that?" The man asked with skepticism lacing his words.

"Because if you don't I'll give one little tug of my finger," the pirate demonstrated, tightening the wire around the officer's neck and giving the man a sharp pinch "and off comes your head."

Sakazuki considered the option a moment and spoke up again.

"And why the hell would I want what's in that briefcase?"

Doflamingo chuckled maliciously.

"Because Kaido sent me to pick it up."

Realization suddenly struck the Rear Admiral and he stared at the case in wonderment, probably imagining his next promotion with the contents inside. The man glanced up at the pirate and Doflamingo instantly knew he would be leaving with one less object than he was supposed to be.

"Alright, pirate. But you have my word that if you say anything about this to anyone, your head is the one that will be rolling."

Doflamingo relaxed his powers, leaving the invisible wire wrapped around the Rear Admiral's neck but loose enough for the other to believe he was free. The two shook on it before Sakazuki left with his new bribe, leaving Doflamingo standing in the same place for several minutes before he deemed it safe enough for him to approach Law without being noticed.

The captain strolled across the street to the park, his arm throbbing painfully with every step as it reminded him that blood was still dribbling off of his fingers from his open wound. He made a mental note to have it checked out sometime soon but right now he needed to leave.

Doflamingo approached the two children sitting on the bench and noticed that the ice cream was just about gone. Of course, the reason behind that was probably because it was all over the both of them. The captain grimaced when he noticed that the little boy's hands, arms, mouth, lap and shirt were coated with the melted treat while the little girl looked to be in no better shape.

Good news was that he only had to deal with one of them.

Bad news was that Law seemed to be the bigger mess of the two.

When he approached, the children immediately noticed him and the little boy grinned happily at the man.

"Doffu, I made a friend!" The kid cheerfully stated.

"Great. Now be a good friend and give her the rest of your ice cream." Doflamingo replied, hoping to reduce the risk of making a bigger mess of the little boy to zero percent. Law gladly consented and handed the cone over to the excited little girl while the pirate set to work cleaning up the mess in front of him. He pulled out a handkerchief while only using his good hand and began thoroughly wiping the kid's fingers and mouth until he eventually had to resort to licking his own thumb then scrubbing it on the exceptionally tough areas, using a little spit-shine to help out. Law fidgeted at the treatment and made little sounds of protest against the cleaning method but Doflamingo paid him no mind.

When the little boy was as clean as he could get, Doflamingo decided it was time to go and scooped the kid into his arm before tossing him onto his shoulder and briskly walking away. Law pushed himself up so he could see out over the top then waved farewell to his new friend.

"Bye Tashigi!" He called out as the little girl stood on the bench, pushed her large glasses up and waved back. Law then noticed a man frantically running up to the bench with a relieved look on his face as he pulled the little girl into an embrace. She returned it happily, calling out "Daddy, I found you!" before laughing gleefully.

~0~

Doflamingo tossed the little boy he was holding into his doctor's arms, ordering the man to find someone to give the twerp a bath. He accepted his task right away and left, taking notice to the blood running down his captain's arm but deciding it was better for his own health to follow his orders first and return as soon as possible to aid the man.

The pirate sank into a couch in his library, reveling at how good it felt to be setting sail once again as his men worked the sails and the rudder just outside the door. They were already out to sea with the island at their backs free and clear so either Sakazuki had kept to his word or was trying desperately hard to decipher what exactly was in the briefcase he had been given. Doflamingo smirked at the thought of the Rear Admiral tearing his hair out over the contents, trying to decipher precisely what he had accepted.

A knock came at the door but the captain didn't need to hear a voice to know it was his first mate. He didn't even bother replying since Vergo would come in after a few more moments passed. As expected the man quietly entered, shutting the door behind him and approached his captain.

"Sir." The first mate stated, stopping in front of Doflamingo. The pirate made a sound of acknowledgment but no other notion gave away that he was listening. Vergo narrowed his eyes behind his sunglasses at the other before coming around to the back side of the couch. Doflamingo continued to stay silent, listening as the other man moved about and waiting for him to state his business. But just as he was about to ask Vergo why he was here bothering him, the first mate reached out and took hold of the captain's haggard arm, pulling it from where it was resting on top of the couch. Doflamingo bolted to awareness as the other gripped his gnarled limb, cursing as pain shot up and down his arm.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" The man bit out through clenched teeth as he noticed the other was now wrapping his lesions that were still oozing blood everywhere.

"Doctor's orders." Was all the first mate replied as he continued to gruffly bandage his captain's arm. Doflamingo stared as his subordinate continued to work on the poor excuse for a patch job but eventually gave up, any amount of protest dead before it ever left his thoughts. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back until it was perched on the head rest as a long breath escaped through his nostrils.

"I thought you were supposed to be bringing a briefcase back with you."

Doflamingo cracked open an eyelid and glanced over at the other pirate who was still busy dressing his injury.

"Yes, I was." The captain replied before shutting his eyes again and turning away. Vergo gave it a moment before persisting.

"So where is it?"

"On the side of your face."

Vergo frowned, having no recollection of ever seeing the luggage and therefore very skeptical of what his captain said. Nevertheless, he still checked only to find nothing.

"If you keep that up you're no better than the brat."

Doflamingo laughed raucously at that, taking several minutes to calm down and by that time Vergo was finished with the bandaging.

"Alright, alright. I gave it to Sakazuki." The man finally stated, still chuckling lightly. Vergo stared at the other in puzzlement.

"Don't worry, the money was transferred electronically. The little red mutt couldn't have snagged any of it."

The questioning look hadn't left the first mate's expression but when silence followed after Doflamingo's statement he spoke.

"So what was in the briefcase?" The man questioned somewhat hesitantly, not quite sure if he was allowed to know. The captain's signature devious grin returned to his face once again.

"A recipe."

Vergo raised an eyebrow, no less confused than before. Doflamingo snickered.

"A recipe for the world's greatest pound cake."

Now Vergo knew what the other man was talking about.

"And you lost it? It would have been easier to hand over the ten million berries instead of giving that up."

The pirate captain shook his head, still grinning like a hyena as he pointed to his temple.

"I have it memorized. Just give me a pen and pad of paper and everything will be fine."

The first mate quickly complied but kept the objects to himself when he realized the arm his captain had injured was his dominate one, offering to be the scribe so the other just had to rattle off the ingredients and instructions.

Both first mate and captain couldn't understand why exactly their boss Kaido decided to form an alliance with another pirate woman named Big Mom. Doflamingo had the sneaking suspicion that some sort of affair was going on between them but then again he really couldn't care less. All he knew was that ever since this pact had been formed, he was now taking orders from both Kaido and Big Mom and if he screwed up in either aspect it would be his neck on the line.

The only saving grace at the moment was his impeccable memory and also imagining as Sakazuki tried to make something out of the harmless cake recipe.

~0~

AN: any body else notice the difference between pirates and marines when meeting at different ages? i mean, if doffu had some ice cream too then maybe him and sakazuki could also be bestest buddies ~( ^ 3^)~

is that plot? ! do i finally smell plot in this story? ! well it's about friggen time i mean it's been like, 15 chapters. and do you know what slow plot means? it means long fanfiction. and when i say long i mean lllllllooooooonnnnnnnnnggggggggg fanfiction. am i predicting this will eventually be my longest story? why yes i am.

and did anyone else catch the terrible, awful, horrendous joke i accidentally made when doflamingo was walking out of that building in the beginning of this chapter?  
"The business transaction had been a piece of cake as his boss had promised..."  
"...had been a piece of cake..."  
"...a piece of cake..."  
the business transaction was cake...  
i dont know about you, but when i finally read this through i couldn't stop laughing for a good 5 minutes


	16. Taken

Gun shots ripped through the air, both the initial blast and zipping noises causing a shot of adrenaline to course through the pirate's veins as he evaded their paths. Each bullet missed its mark by only a fraction of an inch which gave very little leniency to the intended target, forcing the man to focus heavily on how he was moving and not where he was going. The captain frowned even deeper as he felt one of the projectiles graze across his upper arm, cursing his situation more as he ducked into the nearest door he could find that was out of sight from his enemy.

Somehow the Marines seemed to be getting craftier as time wore on; either that or he was just losing his touch. But, of course, Doflamingo refused to believe that theory and swore to be more careful with the information he was given in the future so a mishap like this never happened again.

A coo of distress came from the bundle of cloth in his arms and the pirate tightened his grip slightly in what he hoped was a reassuring manner to try and calm down the child in his grasp. He and Law had been on a little reconnaissance of sorts, scouting out their current location for certain supplies requested from his employer when the two of them fell right into a trap. It turned out this island wasn't, in fact, a hotspot for illegal contraband and black-marketed items, instead it was only a clever lie devised by the Marines and Doflamingo had taken the bait hook line and sinker.

Heavy boot fall and authoritative shouts grew louder before the men chasing after the pirate captain went dashing right past the little hiding spot Doflamingo had currently taken over.

"This way, men! Hurry!"

The sounds disappeared into the distance and when he could no longer hear the men attempting to detain him, Doflamingo let out a small breath of relief. He glanced down at the little boy in his arms just as Law began lifting his head up and was met with a fearful expression as tears gathered on the edges of the four-year-old's eyes.

"What's with that look?" The pirate asked as he frowned at the kid. Law only buried his head against the man's chest once more, shivering lightly from fright.

"You're such a pessimist." Doflamingo stated as he plopped a hand down on the kid's head and smoothed back his dark hair. The captain decided that enough time had passed and stuck his head around the corner of the door, looking both ways before stepping out into the alleyway he had initially been chased through. It was a gloomy and overcast day; the sun way still out in the late afternoon but couldn't be seen through the thick clouds overhead threatening to rain. Doflamingo headed down the opposite way the Marines had run, trying to locate a sign or anything that would lead him back to the port.

Something up ahead looked promising enough to point the captain back to his ship, but as he took a step out onto the street towards it, his path was unexpectedly cut off. Doflamingo grinned sinisterly at the man in front of him, glad his colored shades prevented his adversary from seeing his eyes since they were definitely akin to that of a trapped beast.

"Now this is a surprise." The pirate commented smoothly as he swallowed what little saliva was left in his mouth. "To think the great Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp would come all of the way out here for little ol' me." Doflamingo ran a thumb reassuringly along Law's shoulder blade when the kid began making a fuss again; "Or have you been demoted to this backwater island on some sort of parole?" The pirate glanced around as he continued to talk, buying himself time in order to find a way out of this increasingly terrible situation.

"Don't think you can worm your way out of this, Doflamingo. I have men stationed at every exit you can take so come quietly and make this easier for the both of us." Garp replied sharply as he folded his arms. The captain snickered to himself.

"That's not what your mother said last night."

Before Doflamingo had a chance to regret his choice of words, the Marine officer was moving towards him at him full force with decades of combat experience backing up each of his fists. The pirate dodged at the last moment as Garp aimed an attack for his jaw, causing the man to smash his knuckles against the brick wall the captain had moved from and making it crumble between his fingers from the force. Doflamingo went sprinting down the road at his chance, skidding around the first street corner he came across only to be met with a blockade of naval officers in his way.

"_Shit._" The pirate spat out as he came to a halt in front of the armed men. Law squirmed in his grasp as he sensed the man's apprehension, grunting worriedly at what was going on.

"If you want to compare surprises, I'm baffled that an intimidating guy like you hasn't abandoned the kid in your arms yet." Doflamingo glanced over his shoulder to see Garp turning the corner and coming to a stop behind him. "I guess there's hope for you pirates yet."

The captain narrowed his eyes at the other, his frown widening as his list of escape routes dwindled drastically. But just as he was scanning the area once more for a way out, a plan came to mind. The pirate grinned maliciously at it, turning to face the Vice Admiral entirely.

"You know, you're right." Doflamingo stated definitely. Garp raised an eyebrow as he waited to see where the man was going with this train of thought; "Taking care of shitty brats really isn't fit for a pirate like me."

With that, the captain flung the bundle of fabric straight at the Vice Admiral's face before turning on his heel and bolting towards the wall of expendable soldiers. Law tightened his grasp on the pirate's shirt as his blanket was thrown away but remained quiet, shutting his eyes while trying to stay tough.

Battle cries erupted from the men the captain was charging for and the pirate smirked, knowing this was going to be way too easy. Doflamingo leapt into the air, bounding straight over the Marines while extending a hand and calling out his Devil Fruit powers. In just a few swift movements a path was carved out in front of him as soldiers dropped to the ground, their bodies falling to pieces and soaking the floor beneath in a large pool of blood. Shouts of horror came from the remaining men but Doflamingo had no time to survey the chaos he had created as he sprinted through the exit.

The captain ran as fast as he could, holding Law close to ensure the little boy didn't accidentally glance at the carnage behind them and become more hysterical than he already was. Doflamingo then glanced down his current path, noticing he was heading straight for the ocean. He cackled to himself, pleased that things were finally looking up for him. But just as was about to turn down another alley in an attempt to shake off the Marines, another obstacle appeared in his path.

The ground shook forebodingly, causing the pirate to lose his balance and gracefully summersault to a stop just as a large crack appeared in the ground before him. Doflamingo paled at the sight, hoping to God that the cause of the mini-quake wasn't who he thought it was.

"You should have listened to Garp while you had the chance, boy."

"_Shit!_"

Doflamingo's mind kicked into overdrive, assessing the situation as quickly as possible.

"This trap wasn't just set up for you; we've caught much bigger fish than some wannabe underworld broker."

Leisured footsteps came to the pirate's ears and as he tried to lift his head, Doflamingo found that he couldn't. A bead of sweat left a cool trail down the captain's temple as the grin on his face threatened to tear its way through his cheeks.

"Sengoku." The man greeted through his clenched teeth, unable to move under the torrential weight of the Admiral's Haki.

"A pleasure as always." The Marine replied as he stopped several paces from the pirate who was forced to stay bent over in a bowed position.

A whimper came from the little boy in the captain's arms, causing the man to relax ever so slightly knowing that the Admiral wasn't crushing the kid under this powerful force. Unfortunately, it seemed the other man's entire focus was on the pirate which would make this a very difficult escape.

More footsteps came from behind and Doflamingo assumed it was the Vice Admiral coming to give him a talking to about eviscerating a good number of his subordinates. The thought brought a genuine smile of pleasure to his face as he continued to try and work out a plan, but at the moment it looked as if the pirate had been beaten. Doflamingo shuddered under the weight of the Haki holding him down, still fighting until his last breath to get out of this situation. But just as the captain was about to call out several new profane statements to hopefully distract the two men, an explosion crashed through the silence, tearing apart a building not even a block from where they were located.

The tiny window of opportunity brought on by this minuscule distraction allowed Doflamingo just enough leverage to use his own abilities to battle against the Admiral's. The captain fought his way to a standing position with ever fiber of his being and, at his first opportunity, tore down the streets, breaking free from the entrapment before he could be apprehended by the dynamic duo again.

Doflamingo practically flew down the pavement, heading straight for the water when he noticed a small boat floating off of one of the docks with a familiar figure standing on the wooden boards. The captain cackled at the sight of his first mate, all too excited to get away from two of the most fearsome Marine officers in the world.

But, of course, said officers weren't going to make this getaway easy for him. Vice Admiral Garp was on the scene right away, keeping pace with the young man and securing a brutal grip on the pirate's arm as soon as he was close enough for it. Doflamingo cringed as a sickening snap resounded in his ears, biting back a call of pain as he was brought down once more. The captain managed to slip out of the Marine's grasp, sending him toppling to the floor along with the pirate who was sent tumbling down the street.

White flashes scattered over his vision but Doflamingo ignored them, instead he focused once more on his initial goal and hopped to his feet, vaguely aware of the distressed calls coming from Law but chose to ignore them.

An ominous feeling came from behind the pirate before he was encased once more in a thick layer of unyielding Haki; forcing him to slow down just enough for Garp to bring himself into a position that would allow him to capture the slippery captain. But as he was about to fall into the hands of his enemy once more, the familiar figure from before was now beside him and fending off his attacker.

"Run!" Vergo called out as he deflected Garp's advances and managed to push the hulking man back. Doflamingo obeyed without a word of complaint, heading once again for the shore. Vergo suddenly appeared beside him, sprinting alongside his captain as they both raced down the road in order to escape their dismal fate.

They dashed across the remaining street and tore through the docks before hopping none too gently into the little dinghy the first mate had prepared. When Vergo managed to get his footing about himself he climbed to the back of the boat and fished something out of his pocket, producing an impact dial before dipping it into the water. Doflamingo sat up, breathing heavily after having banged up his broken arm more than needed, gripping it tightly as he willed the pain away. But before he had any time to brace himself for the shock of the dial sending the three of them flying out to sea, a familiar and hostile hand reached down for the pirate.

"Not so fast, snake." Sengoku stated with an angry glare as he took hold of the first thing in his reach. But it was too late; Vergo activated the dial which sent the pirates skittering across the ocean's surface and out to open water. The last thing the captain heard was Law calling out in horror as Doflamingo and Vergo were sent flying over a mile out to sea.

~0~

AN: there's going to be a few more parts to this (obviously) because i was writing it and realized my transition between the end of this part and the beginning of the next part was awful and made no sense. so, being the lazy person i am, i decided that instead of rewriting it i would just make them separate chapters. the next parts will be up within the next few days so stay tuned!


	17. Taken 2

With the title of Admiral came a lot of power and responsibility. It meant keeping up a constant manner of confidence for junior officers to look up to, strength and cunning rivaled by few as well as an unyielding personality. It was for practical purposes along with having to face dangerous foes in his day to day life that he found making these points was essential to his character. However, those qualities seemed absolutely useless is the presence of a case as simple as a child crying over something that had been forcefully taken away and they could no longer have.

Sengoku massaged his temples, feeling as a headache threatened to pop his eyes out of his skull. He, Garp and the rest of his officers just managed to get back to the ship a few minutes ago and the kid in his arms hadn't stopped wailing since the moment he had plucked him from Doflamingo's grasp. He almost felt bad for the child until he remembered the little boy's caretaker was a bloodthirsty pirate.

Of course, that still didn't make up for the ear splitting screams.

Suddenly, the kid was swept from his grasp which caused the Admiral to panic for a moment until he realized it was just Monkey D. Garp taking the child away.

"Hey now there little fellow. It's time to stop crying."

Sengoku stared in wonderment at the scene in front of him, legitimately paralyzed by the sight of Garp using baby-talk with the kid.

"I bet that mean old pirate told you lots of bad things about the Marines, but we're actually good people." The Vice Admiral stated with a goofy smile on his face. To the amazement of Sengoku, the little boy calmed down significantly as his cries turned into soft sobs and hiccups.

"N-not mean." The child claimed as he quickly used his arms to wipe up his face.

"Exactly! We're the good guys." Garp reiterated once more. Law stared at him for a moment before vigorously shaking his head. The Marine raised an eyebrow.

"No? What do you mean no?"

The little boy sucked in a deep breath before sniffling then answering.

"Doffu's not mean." He stated as clearly as he could through his shaky voice. Garp frowned.

"Not mean? But he's a pirate and pirates are bad people." The Marine stated as he motioned to one of his men to get some clean tissues for the boy. Law shook his head lightly as his lip quivered and Garp had to think for a moment.

"He hasn't hurt you at all?"

Law thought the question over for a bit before shaking his head once more.

"He doesn't say bad things to you?"

Law shook his head.

"He doesn't call you mean names?"

Law shook his head.

"He's not scary?"

Law shook his head roughly this time, tears welling up in his eyes again as quiet sobs surfaced once more.

"I want Doffu." The little boy mumbled through his strained voice, bringing his hands up once more to try and stop the tears that were endlessly running down his cheeks. The Vice Admiral looked around in a panic for a moment, scanning the area for something that might cheer the little boy up. Of course, they were currently on a battleship meaning there wasn't much to choose from. Garp returned his attention to the kid once more and decided that the antics he once used for calming his own son down over twenty years ago would have to suffice for the moment.

Again, Sengoku was mesmerized by the goofy display of the great and powerful Marine Vice Admiral making silly faces and over dramatic movements as he tried his best to cheer little Law up.

~0~

The moment the child had been removed from his captain's grasp was like a blow to the head from a blunt object as both Vergo and Doflamingo stared in absolute trepidation at the retreating docks.

The next moment came like a slap to the face and took all of the strength the first mate could muster to keep the other pirate from jumping head first into the water. Vergo was given a glimpse of his captain's feral expression just before the man bolted to the back of the boat, rocking it until the little thing nearly capsized as he attempted to find the quickest way back to shore. The first mate was on it before he could really think this situation over, clamping an arm around the other pirate and throwing him back to the other end of the dinghy.

Vergo went straight after him, pinning the man to the floor with a knee on his chest and a hand around his captain's good arm while the other went for the man's throat. It wasn't meant as an immediate threat, only to remind the other pirate that if Vergo had to drag his captain's unconscious body back to their ship, he would.

"You can't win." The first mate announced in a warning tone.

"Get the hell off of me!" Doflamingo shouted as he nearly flung his subordinate over the side of the boat. However, Vergo stopped him before he had the chance by switching hands and securing his grip rigidly around the other man's broken arm. The pirate stifled a call of pain, calming down significantly as he began thinking clearly again.

"We'll get the kid back but we can't do anything if you pull some stupid move that'll get you captured without a plan." Vergo stated evenly, feeling as the other man relaxed the tension that had been steadily building up. Doflamingo let out a deep breath from his nose and nodded once before gruffly shoving the man off of him so he could sit up.

Vergo consented and began running different possible methods of rescue through his mind, completely aware of the bloodlust and hatred emanating from his captain as the temperature around them seemed to drop several degrees.

~0~

Law squealed with joy as he was tossed into the air once more, giggling the whole way back down into Vice Admiral Garp's outstretched hands. The Marine officer also had a large grin on his face, chuckling lightly every time the little boy returned back into his grasp as the two continued their pleasant game of ups-a-daisy. The junior officers who happened to be passing by on whatever errand they were running would all stop midstride, genuinely perplexed as they watched their fearsome superior acting like a casual grandfather. Some even plucked up enough courage to comment on it.

"Vice Admiral Garp, sir. You seem to have done this before, do you also have grandchildren?" A younger officer asked as the hulking man caught the little boy once again. Garp turned to the Marine who had questioned him and replied.

"Grandchildren? I'm much too young for grandchildren!" The man stated with a laugh before holding the kid in front of him and contorting his face into funny expressions. Law giggled while reaching out, pinching Garp's cheeks between his fingers as he also tried to make the man look as ridiculous as possible. The Vice Admiral laughed again before hoisting the little boy onto his shoulders.

"But this kid does remind me of my own son." Garp mused as he held the boy steady.

"Son? I didn't know you were a father." One of the lower ranking officers said curiously. The Vice Admiral grinned at the statement as he brought up a hand and used it to mercilessly tickle the child on his shoulders. Law shouted with laughter, trying to push the hand away but was unsuccessful.

"There's not much to say about him since he ran away from home at fourteen." The man said as he ceased his attack and brought the child back down from his shoulders, holding Law at his side in one arm as he used his other hand to fiddle with the kid's hair. "Last I heard he was running around with a group of undesirable punks."

The other Marines glanced between each other, not entirely sure how to react to that. But before they had a chance, Garp spoke up.

"But if that little brat does have any kids he better tell me or he'll be getting my fist of love right for his nose."

Somewhere on the Grand Line Monkey D. Dragon flinched, glancing out to sea as if he had been called for.

~0~

Night fell and blanketed the evening in a veil of darkness, casting larger shadows on the already gloomy day and making it difficult to see anything around without any street lights. Doflamingo strolled through the roads as if he had no where to be while a creepy smile continued to splay across his visage wider and more crooked the longer he walked. Whether this sinister expression was from his eagerness or the substantial amount of painkillers he'd taken, the captain couldn't really tell but the cast around his broken arm was a constant reminder not to do anything too stupid for the next few weeks.

However, no matter how much his gate made it seem like the man was only sauntering aimlessly, he definitely had somewhere to be and had been looking forward to the encounter with his intended audience all day.

The pirate captain continued his stroll for some time until he wound up in front of his anticipated destination, snickering manically to himself as he stared down the Marine battleship with a calculating expression as he counted the number of men stationed in sight

_Only six._ He thought to himself with a sigh of boredom. _This is going to be too easy._

Doflamingo pressed on, not catching the attention of the Marines until he was nearly at the gangplank. But just as the two officers on post on the docks were about to shout out an alert to their crew members they were quickly silenced by the intruding man when a nearly-invisible wire sliced cleanly though their necks and sent their heads toppling to the floor.

The captain had to suppress a bout of laughter as he pressed on, not trying to give himself away until the right time.

The sound of two heavy objects hitting the ground brought the two men stationed at the top of the gangplank to attention, causing them to throw each other a suspicious glance before peering over the side of the ship. When they caught sight of two decapitated comrades collapsed on the floor with blood still pooling around their bodies, the two of them instantly knew who the perpetrator was. But before they had a chance to raise an alarm and warn the crew, they were met with the same fate as their colleagues when Doflamingo pulled himself over the side of the ship, wrapping a wire around either of their necks. With the twitch of the two fingers he was using to control his Devil Fruit powers, the pirate sent two more heads tumbling to the floor.

The last two Marines were unfortunate enough to witness the bloody scene and stood petrified with fear one second longer than they should have, allowing for the intruding pirate to quickly dash over to them and finish his work.

Doflamingo smiled cruelly, licking his lips in anticipation before continuing along his path. The captain noticed that standing at the main entrance to the battleship were several more guards on duty, but these ones weren't gaping deer like the others. The pirate watched as the Marines scrambled around deck, calling out a 'trespasser alert' at the top of their lungs until Doflamingo had had enough of their incessant squawking. He lifted a hand and stopped each man in their tracks, feeling as their fear resonated through each of his wires and savoring the sweet moment of retribution. With a single twitch of his fingers, the pirate dissembled each Marine officer until they were nothing but a pile of indiscernible limbs as blood seeped into the floorboards.

That is, save for one man.

Doflamingo tugged with his final finger, pulling the remaining trembling soldier across the deck until he stood an arm's width away. The pirate chuckled at the scene in front of him, his expression growing darker as vindictive thoughts scampered through his mind.

"Scream." The captain said through his clenched teeth as his malicious smile continued to be as threatening as his actions. The officer complied and before he was also sliced to pieces, a terrified shriek rang through the night air which would alert anyone nearby to the horrors that had taken place on board the battleship.

Doflamingo smiled, pleased that everything so far was going according to plan.

~0~

AN: well would ya look at that; another cliff hanger! my impatience is astounding because if it weren't i would have just given you the "Taken" chapters in one go. oh well!

and good news! i've finally learned the difference between forward and foreword. unfortunately, i've been using foreword when i should be using forward in literally ALL of my fanfics soo... that's super awkward.  
you live and you learn, you know? and am i too lazy to fix it? yes. yes i am.

next chapter will be up in the next few days. and hey! with the cruelty in this one maybe i can finally write a proper chapter for "Back Story"! we shall see :3


	18. Taken 3

A shrieking wail traveled through the wind and caused Vice Admiral Garp to come to attention from his nap. The sound was a sure fire alert to the fact that the battleship was now under attack and the Marine officer knew exactly who it was. Even before a knock came at his door, Garp was throwing on his uniform as quickly as possible and mentally preparing for the worst.

"Sir!" The junior officer called through the closed door after knocking several times. Without even a proper greeted, Garp called a reply.

"How many are there?" The Vice Admiral barked as he threw a glance at the child who had been sleeping in the corner of his room. Law sat up and rubbed his eyes, yawning tiredly as he tried to see what was going on.

"Just one, sir!" The officer replied. Garp paused in his task, glancing in astonishment at the man who he couldn't see.

"One? One of his men?" The Vice Admiral questioned in bewilderment.

"No, sir! It's Doflamingo himself, I'm sure of it."

Garp balked at the information, genuinely surprised at how suicidal the pirate was. Then again, this could all be some sort of trap... The man burst from his room and ordered the junior officer to watch after the kid and call for help if anything were to go wrong. The other man saluted his superior and watched as the higher ranking officer quickly left the room, turned a corner and was finally heading out of sight.

The Marine turned his attention to his current task and watched as the little boy began sluggishly standing up, obviously too tired for even this small amount of work. Law waddled over to the door only to be halted when he ran straight into the officer's grasp. The man picked the kid up and held steadfastly against his feeble attempts to escape as he set the little boy down on his hip.

"Calm down, brat. There's no need to go crazy." The man stated as he began heading away from the Vice Admiral's quarters. Law glanced up, instantly recognizing the voice.

"Veygo!" He called out happily only to be shushed by the pirate.

"Are you trying to give me away you little turd?" The first mate asked with a frown. Law drew back from his excitement, giving the other an apologetic look. Vergo only sighed peevishly and carried on.

"Let's just find the captain before he manages to get himself killed."

~0~

Doflamingo burst into maniacal hysterics, laughing demonically as he continued to dismantle everything in sight. Cargo, supplies, decorative fixtures, nautical features, people, it didn't matter. If it was in his eyesight, the captain saw fit to use his Devil Fruit abilities as frivolously as possible while he waited for his first mate to secure the little boy who had been captured several hours ago.

Of course, even if Vergo came back now with the kid Doflamingo wasn't entirely sure he could stop his rampage. After all, revenge like this was just too sweet.

Gun shots came to the pirate's ear again and he ripped himself from his enjoyment, effortlessly dodging the projectiles and also locating the men who had shot at him. When he did, Doflamingo's frightening expression worsened as he imagined all of the wonderful ways he could spend the next few minutes of his time while having to deal with a few pesky Marines.

Well, wonderful was subjective.

The pirate captain leapt up the nearest flight of stairs, quickly chasing after the men who were attempting to shoot him full of holes and managing to catch each individual in his Devil Fruit Powers. The man cackled in triumph, watching as the five in his grasp tried their best to escape, failing miserably as the colorless wires slowly but surely began constricting them tighter and tighter. Doflamingo snickered victoriously.

"Would you like to hear something rather intriguing before I slice each one of you up into little bits?" The pirate asked in a light and airy voice, legitimately curious. The officers turned their attention to the man, some with tears in their eyes as they awaited their imminent demise but none answered. However, this didn't deter the man from telling his story; "I once heard something rather fascinating and I would like to see if it's true." The captain stated as he tugged the men in his trap closer none too gently, drawing up a wire around the neck of one of the Marines as he tried to scream.

"Shh, it'll be all over soon." The pirate whispered reassuringly as he placed a finger to his own lips. A smile carved into his expression as he continued.

"A while ago on a very provincial island far from here was a tribe of warriors renowned and feared amongst their town's people." The Marines glanced fearfully between each other as the pirate continued to speak. "Apparently whenever one of the residents committed a crime, even one as simple as stealing a loaf of bread to feed his starving family, the warriors would perform a little ritual."

The wires entrapping each of the Marine officers suddenly tightened, causing several to call out in pain and others to break down into hysterics. Doflamingo silenced them all with a single, small slice to the throat as he severed their vocal cords and inhibited any sort of cries for help.

"The part of this ritual I'm most curious about now is the fact that these men would constrict their victims, much like this, until various parts began to rupture." The pirate stated with a gleeful tone to his voice along with a pleasant smile adorning his features. The Marines panicked even more, clawing at the restraints holding them in place but only managing to tear at their own flesh. Doflamingo chuckled darkly, raising his hands in preparation.

"I always wondered what it would look like to see a man's eyes burst from his skull with his skin splitting from the pressure."

The ensnared men gurgled and guffawed as they desperately attempted to free themselves while their cries were nothing more than choked efforts against the inevitable. Doflamingo roared with hilarity at this display but just as he was about to see for himself how the human body reacted to slow and immense pressure, a large figure came barreling at him from the side. The captain leapt out of the way, clenching his fists from his instincts and thus ruining his experiment. The pirate cast a bored glance at the Marine officers who were reduced to nothing but dismembered body parts as they fell to the ground and proceeded to make a mess of the floor. Doflamingo returned his gaze to the man who had interrupted him and grinned menacingly.

"Just the man I had been hoping for." The captain announced as he stared Vice Admiral Garp down. The Marine officer stayed where he was, arms folded as more junior officers began encircling the pirate. Doflamingo couldn't help but wonder two things; one was whether or not he was capable of landing a decent punch in the Vice Admiral's face or two, if Vergo had found Law yet.

Of course, Doflamingo was hoping to accomplish the first option before the second was confirmed, but either way he still wanted to get off of the Marine battleship before he was captured and sent to Impel Down.

"I always figured you were one of the few mindless pirates out there who actually planned their devious schemes, but it seems I thought too much of you."

Doflamingo frowned at the insult as he tried to count the number of Marines seeking to bravely encircle him. After a while though, the pirate gave up and just decided to continue stalling for time as his first mate finished his part of the job. Just as a clever quip came to mind which the captain thought Garp would be very appreciative of, something familiar was brought to his attention.

Or should he say someone...?

Doflamingo glared bitterly at the Vice Admiral as an unknown soldier walked up to the circle of Marines with Trafalgar Law in his hands. The dark circles under the little boy's eyes were much more pronounced than usual as he tried his best to keep his head up, but the fatigue was obvious and it was only a matter of time before he was out like a light.

"Distract the enemy while your nameless henchmen attempt to take back what was stollen? Do you actually think I'm that much of an idiot?" Garp stated with humor evident in his voice before waving the soldier away. Law disappeared along with the man and Doflamingo could only stand by and watch with a scowl etched into his features.

"You really don't want me to answer that." The captain retorted angrily. The Vice Admiral ignored what the other man was insinuating and motioned for a few of his officers to step forward with a pair of Sea Stone handcuffs. Doflamingo scoffed at the advances but as he was getting ready to tear his way through the crowd of Marines, a hand was brought down onto his head as a familiar sensation prevented him from slaughtering more people.

Doflamingo felt like he could laugh out loud at the direction this rescue had taken but was unable to since Admiral Sengoku's Haki was nearly powerful enough to send him down onto his knees. The pirate didn't need to turn around to know the man standing behind him was currently using his own Devil Fruit powers to transform himself into a giant that even dwarfed the eight foot tall (and growing) captain.

"I'll call it in, Sengoku. It seems we'll have to make a pit stop at Marineford after all."

~0~

Despite his size, age and increasing weariness, Law refused to go down without a fight. The little boy squirmed and kicked against the Marine currently taking him back to Garp's room in order to resume his night's rest and brought out many colorful remarks from the soldier as he tried to hold against the struggling child.

"Dammit! Quit fidgeting you little monster!" The officer stated in an annoyed tone as he continued to reposition the little boy in his arms. To the man's relief, they were in front of the Vice Admiral's door within a few minutes as Law was currently being held upside-down since that seemed to pose the least amount of problems for the man. The soldier quickly headed inside and went straight for the mess of sheets on the floor and threw back the comforter, set the kid in the middle then tossed the sheet over him. The officer figured he'd get enough time to high-tale it to the door and shut it behind him before the little boy had a chance to follow after and he was right. The Marine closed the door behind him and stood in front of it, waiting for the child to start pounding on it and demanding to be let out.

The soldier waited for quite some time until he realized that it was much too quiet in the other room. Hesitantly, he turned the knob and cracked the door open, slowly peering around the corner in search for the little boy. However, Law was already gone. The Marine didn't get to see as the child disappeared through the ventilation shaft next to his makeshift bed, popping through the next available opening which was just outside of Garp's room before he scampered as quickly as possible down the halls.

~0~

Doflamingo cringed as his wrists were pinned above his head in Sea Stone to the wall he was sitting in front of, biting back a few curse words and nasty statements as his broken arm was stretched out more than it needed to be.

"Not even bothering to take pity on a crippled man? You Marines really are losing your style." The pirate evenly stated as the latches were sealed. The two lower ranking officers then left the cell, shutting the iron door behind them with a click that resounded ominously through the brig. Garp stood in front of the cage, dismissing the two other Marines to just leave the Vice Admiral and pirate captain alone amongst the many other vacant cells.

"Maybe if you were an honest man then I might help you out, but as a pirate you should be tough enough to withstand this." The officer stated. But Doflamingo knew that wasn't the only thing on the other man's mind. Garp was definitely holding something nasty back about all of his subordinates Doflamingo had mercilessly butchered not even fifteen minutes ago.

Not to mention the ones from the early afternoon…

Doflamingo grinned ominously as he clearly remembered all of the shouts of terror and dismay he had caused over the past several hours, chuckling lightly at the passing thought. Garp raised an eyebrow.

"Is there something funny about getting locked up?" The man asked rhetorically. Doflamingo knew he shouldn't give an answer in return to that question since anything he could think of as a come-back now would just worsen his situation, but what the Vice Admiral said at the moment just sounded too much like a challenge.

"I guess you could say it all depends on a person's point of view." The captain purred through his crooked smile before laughing deep in his throat. "Some people enjoy watching TV or theatrical productions, I just happen to love the sound of falling men and witnessing as they're reduced to their most primal instincts."

Garp stood like a rock; his expression unmoving as the pirate threw his head back and cackled with laughter.

"There's just something about it, you know? Watching people break down to their most basic thoughts, learning which ones stand petrified with fear and which ones run screaming like the cowards they are." Doflamingo flashed a malicious grin at the other man. "Wouldn't you just love to know which of your subordinates stood there pissing their pants right before I gutted them like fish?"

A large crash reverberated off of the echoing walls, causing the pirate to stop speaking as a wicked grin carved into his expression. Garp stood with his fist firmly smashed through the iron bars, a reminder that if the captain continued his disgusting story there would be hell to pay.

Just as the Vice Admiral was removing his hand from the hole he'd made, something small darted out from the stairs leading down to the brig and ran straight for Doflamingo's cell. Before Garp had a chance to completely orient himself and bend over to pick up the little intruder, Law was already squeezing himself between the bars and pulling his little body through to the other side.

The kid didn't even get a chance to call out a greeting before he burst into tears and scuttled straight for the pirate captain, colliding with Doflamingo and wrapping his arms around the man's chest. The pirate let out a sound of discomfort as his injuries were jostled around once more, glancing down at the little boy with a mixture of surprise and bewilderment.

Clomping steps suddenly came from the stairwell Law had come from and the three were met with another Marine officer who was panting and out of breath. When he came into view his uniform was obviously disheveled, his hair matted and several grit marks adorned his cloths and face.

"Vice Admiral, sir!" The junior officer stated when he regained his breath. "I'm sorry sir, he escaped… the little kid escaped and I tried to pursue but I lost him again and…" The man was suddenly cut off by raucous laughter as the pirate captain flung his head back and cackled as loud as he could. The two officers glanced inside of the cage, confused as to what was going on.

"Out smarted by a four-year-old!" Doflamingo called out as he laughed again. "Really now, if that's all it takes then I guess I shouldn't have even bothered coming!" The pirate captain snickered a moment longer before lightly bopping his forehead against the top of Law's, causing the little boy to eventually look up as tears continued to stream from his eyes.

"Why didn't you tell me you could get out of this situation on your own?" The man playfully asked in order to get on the Marine's nerves. It nearly worked as the officer immediately got into a huff only to be held back by the Vice Admiral before being dismissed. The man grudgingly turned away, glancing once more over his should to see Doflamingo leaning his chin on top of the little boy's head, grinning sadistically as he continued to chuckle at the other man's incompetence.

As the lower ranking officer left, Garp reached into his pocket and extracted the keys to the pirate's cage, inserting the correct one into the lock and opening the door before stepping inside. Doflamingo frowned unhappily from what was about to happen but was completely powerless to stop it. The Vice Admiral reached down, clamping an immovable hand around each of the child's arms and prying Law's grasp from around the pirate, causing the little boy to fall deeper into hysterics as he swung his legs violently and called out in protest.

"No! No, let me go!" Law shouted as he fought against his fatigue and being taken away again. However, Garp wouldn't hear of it and held the child in his arms, returning an equally terrifying stare to Doflamingo who could only glower at the man in defiance as the Vice Admiral turned away for what might be the last time.

"No! Wait! Stop!" Law called out as he bunched his fists up against the Marine's uniform. "Doffu! Doffu, are you really a bad person?"

The Vice Admiral stopped in his tracks, looking down at the child in his arms for a moment as the silence between the three of them was only interrupted every now and again by choked sobs. He turned slowly, facing the pirate and allowing the kid in his arms to as well.

Doflamingo sat in silence for a moment, returning the little boy's stare as he turned the question in his mind over and over before finally speaking.

"I don't know." The pirate replied after some time, his expression neutral. "I can't make that decision for you, kid." Law quickly wiped the tears from his eyes as he tried to hold back more miserable sniffles.

"Do you think I'm a bad person?"

Law sat in silence as the decision was suddenly thrust upon him. The little boy took a moment to glance up at the Vice Admiral who had initially thrown him into question over this subject only to return his attention to Doflamingo and reply quickly with a shake of his head.

"No, I don't think so." The little boy replied through his shaking voice, brushing his arms over his eyes once more as he wished for his tears to stop flowing. The pirate blinked once, mystified by what he just heard with his expression speaking volumes for his confusion. For a moment, Doflamingo felt he was lost inside of some dream before he quickly pulled himself back to reality and grinned his usual Cheshire cat smile.

"Then that's all that matters." The pirate stated matter-of-factly. Law sucked in a breath and tried his best to smile back but the expression only looked pained and forced as more tears gathered at his eyes while he nodded his head up and down.

Suddenly, the boy began moving again as Garp took several steps. Doflamingo stared at the man, his expression questioning what the Vice Admiral was up to as Law was slowly lowered down into the pirate's lap. The kid instantly attacked him once more, causing one more gruff noise of pain to come from the captain as another twinge shot through his arm. But he accepted the embrace nonetheless, leaning his chin on top of the little boy's head as he felt warm teardrops trickle down his chest.

The Marine officer turned away, heading for the exit and shutting it behind him as he left the brig without a word.

~0~

AN: am i really so cruel as to cut this into another chapter...? yes, i am. because i know what you're all wondering; "dude, wtf happened to vergo? !"  
in time, my dear lovely readers. in time.

have i ever mentioned that i live off of the depraved and fanfiction-hungry souls of despairing fangirls? in other words, the torment i am responsible for by leaving off on such maddeningly questionable endings makes me feel like rainbows and sunshine on the inside~  
just kidding. endings that leave such gaping holes make me wonder why i can't be more patient and just wait to type everything up like fully-functioning people do.


	19. Taken 4

If there was one thing he wasn't accustomed to in his life it was compassion. Not that he really cared though since sentimental thoughts seemed to be the downfall of strong men no matter how just their cause. In every case of a life or death situation he'd witnessed it always lead to a gory demise for the most sympathetic group member seeing as that person couldn't bear to use their comrades as human shields. Then again, now that he thought about it, Doflamingo didn't consider many to be his equal but for those he did he was willing to risk his life. He tried to think off all the people he truly felt any degree of caring emotion towards but eventually found that he couldn't recall enough of them to count on all of his fingers. The pirate stared at the few digits that were raised, wondering if he really was this indifferent with so many other people.

A small noise came from the child still lying on top of him and the captain looked down, watching as Law breathed slowly and regularly. The little boy hadn't even lasted five minutes after Garp left before he was fast asleep with his arms wrapped around the pirate as if Doflamingo was some sort of large stuffed animal.

The captain attempted to move his arms again, looking to see if the Sea Stone cuffs had loosened somewhat since the last time he tried to pull his wrists through. Unfortunately, they hadn't and Doflamingo grumbled a few curses for the Marines who had locked him up.

Law sighed lightly at the movement, turning over in his sleep and facing the pirate's line of sight before mumbling something unintelligible and returning to his peaceful dreams. The captain stared down at him, still baffled from the events that had taken place earlier. Despite all of the terrible things he'd said to the boy, all of the names he'd called him, the threats and his awful parenting skills it seemed that Law still thought of him as a good person.

So either the kid was a few sandwiches short of a picnic or desperate enough to seek help from a psychopath.

Doflamingo let out a breath and leaned his head down, resting his cheek on the top of Law's head and resigning himself to just listen to the little boy until the rest of his escape plan finally fell into place.

A clang sounded from down the hallway and the captain smiled sinisterly.

_Right on schedule._ He thought as footsteps clacked down the corridor until Vergo was standing in front of his cell. The captain lifted his head and grinned at the other man as his first mate set to work picking the lock to his cage. But when Doflamingo caught a good look at his subordinate he raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"What the hell are you wearing?" The captain asked quietly as he took noticed to the other pirate's shaggy wig, mustache and large sunglasses.

"It's so the Marine's don't recognize me from my wanted poster." Vergo replied as he successfully picked the lock and swung the door open.

"You don't have a wanted poster." Doflamingo stated as his first mate then began working on his handcuffs. The pirate took a moment to think that over but returned to his work without a word. The captain mentally rolled his eyes as he wondered how he could have possibly found such a stupidly tactful man to be his first mate.

The first restraint was off in no time and Vergo switched sides in order to undo the other. Doflamingo hissed unpleasantly as he moved his sore and throbbing broken arm, wishing he had taken some pain killers for the road while he had the chance. When he was completely free, the pirate secured Law against his chest and stood. Vergo looked up at his captain skeptically for a moment before speaking.

"It would be an easier escape if I hold onto the kid, sir." The first mate stated, extending his hands as he offered to take the little boy. Doflamingo hesitated for a moment but quickly understood the point the other was making and handed Law off. Vergo took him gently into his arms, careful not to wake the child up, but even so as soon as the boy felt a different pair of hands under his arms he sleepily pried his eyes open. Law struggled against the first mate's chest, grunting in objection and distress until he felt a familiar hand on top of his head.

"Relax, kid. It's just Vergo." Doflamingo said as he brushed the little boy's hair back. Law whimpered pathetically with a pout on his lips, reminding the captain how much he'd rather be with him. The pirate frowned at his expression before flicking him lightly on the forehead with one of his fingers. "Keep acting like some whiny baby and I'll leave you here for good."

Law rubbed the sore spot a few times but complied, leaning his head against the first mate's shoulder since he could hardly stay awake any longer. The two pirates exited the cage, heading up top in order to leave the battle ship and sail away from this island as quickly as possible.

~0~

_Burr burr burr_

The Vice Admiral's eyes flickered open before he let a heavy yawn escape his mouth. Garp fumbled around with his sheets for a moment and sat up as his Den-Den Mushi called out once more.

_Burr burr burr_

The Marine ran a tired hand through his greying hair, wishing people would just allow him to sleep peacefully for the night since all of this past week had been strenuous enough. He picked up the receiver for his Den-Den and held it up to his mouth before replying.

"Vice Admiral Garp speaking." The man stated clearly into the receiver.

_Burr burr burr_

Garp glanced down at the snail in confusion, wondering if he had somehow answered the thing wrong when he suddenly realized it wasn't even the one attempting to get his attention. The Vice Admiral replaced the communicator's end with a _ka-chunk_ and opened a drawer.

_Burr burr burr_

The Marine shifted a few items around to produce a little black snail, a gift that had been given to him nearly four and a half years ago. It was an untraceable Den-Den, had no out-going message capabilities and was only tied to one number so Garp knew exactly who was calling. The Vice Admiral pulled the snail from the drawer and set it on the table before letting out a large exhale and picking up the receiver.

"Yes?" The Marine asked in an emotionless tone, vaguely wondering why the one calling even wanted to speak with him now.

"_Dad._" The voice on the other end stated. Garp tightened his grip on the side of his mattress, the sound of his son's voice nearly piercing through his heart as the memory of last time he saw his boy came to mind.

"Dragon." The Vice Admiral stated quietly as he managed to keep his voice in check. There were a million things he wanted to say right now. He wanted to lash out at the other man, yell and demand for him to stop his foolishness and come home already. Garp wanted to bring up the fact that Dragon had thrown his life away, thrown his chances for college and joining the Marines away and most of all that the Revolutionary Army was beginning to be targeted by the World Government as a dangerous threat. Garp felt like it was his duty as a father and a seasoned officer to report this call and find his son before the man had a chance to screw up his life any more than it was, but above everything else, above his responsibilities and regulations, there was one thing the Vice Admiral knew took precedence before anything.

"It's good to hear your voice." Garp stated as a smile tugged at his lips. Regardless of the fact that his first and only child had made the decision to defy the Marines and everything they stand for, he was still just that; his son. And if Garp was forced to choose one value to cherish for the rest of his life it would be family.

"_It's good to hear from you too, Dad_."

~0~

"Run through the plan one more time." Doflamingo stated as he, Vergo and Law made their way down one of the many corridors while looking for the closest exit.

"Step One; you create a distraction in order to divert the Marines' attention away from me as I sneak on board to secure the kid." Vergo stated as he and his captain darted around a corner and began running up several flights of stairs. "Step Two; I get found out by a few lower ranks and ditch the kid while you get detained by Garp and Sengoku."

The two men came to the main deck and peered out the door frame in order to see if the cost was clear. When it was, Vergo and Doflamingo returned to their task of leaving the ship as unnoticed as possible.

"Step Three; while the Marines think they've won I break you out of prison, get the kid and we get the hell out." The first mate concluded just as the two pirates came to the final door which led out onto deck. Doflamingo glanced around for a moment to quickly see if anyone was hiding out behind them before opening the door just a crack and peaking out a small gap. The captain proceeded through and stepped out into the chilled night, staying close to the wall as he motioned for Vergo to follow after. The first mate obeyed and headed out as well, softly shutting the door behind him as the two darted for the railing which overlooked the ocean.

When they arrived, Doflamingo waved a few hand signs to a small dinghy that was tied up just next to the Marine battleship and a rope was tossed into his grasp. The captain then secured it to the rail before stepping back to allow Vergo to go first with the kid. The first mate reached for the rope but as he was getting ready to climb over the side, a large hand clamped down onto his shoulder.

Both Vergo and Doflamingo looked over their shoulders in shock, meeting the stern eyes of Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp. The pirate captain cringed, not entirely sure what to do at the moment but expecting he might have to initiate Step Four of his planning process.

Then again, that could get really messy even for his tastes.

Garp removed his menacing stare from the pirates and softened it before gazing down at the little boy sleeping peacefully in Vergo's arms. A longing expression overcame his features that looked withered, distraught and relieved all in one. He lifted the hand he had on the first mate's shoulder and placed it gently on top of Law's head, slowly running his fingers over the little boy's hair and causing him to snuggle in closer to the pirate who was holding him. The Vice Admiral left his hand there for a moment longer before retracting it and turning his attention back to Doflamingo.

"Leave." The Marine officer stated authoritatively to the perplexed pirate. Doflamingo stood dazed for a moment before coming to his senses and waving for Vergo to head down the rope. The captain reached for it next, happy to get away from this place no matter the reasoning, only to be stopped by a gruff hand on his shoulder spinning him back around. Doflamingo hardly had a chance to react and before he knew it the Vice Admiral had his brawny fingers wrapped around his neck, pulling him in close to the Marine's face.

"Allow one hair on that boy's head to be harmed and I will hunt you down to the ends of the earth and lock you away before you have a chance to regret your actions. Understand?"

Doflamingo couldn't really tell if he was gaping at the other man from the shock of this situation or the lack of oxygen intake from being strangled, but either way he had no clue what possessed the Marine Vice Admiral to allow him to get away with only a warning.

The captain composed himself once more and brushed the officer off, standing straight again before answering.

"Don't insult me, Garp." The pirate stated, returning the other man's hard stare until he also hopped over the side of the rail, leaping into the darkness of the night.

~0~

Garp watched the dinghy with a vigilant eye until it finally rowed out of sight. He felt a pang of regret in his heart but ignored the sensation, remembering the promise he had made to let the pirates go.

At first he had been angry at Dragon for withholding such precious information and not consulting him before a decision was made. In fact, even now the Vice Admiral wanted to deck his son a good bruiser after what he'd done. But after seeing the lengths Doflamingo had gone to in order to secure the little boy's safety, Garp allowed himself to be put at ease, if only just a little bit.

The Marine officer lifted up his hands to gaze at them, remembering what it felt like to hold the small child in his grasp as he recalled the sounds of the kid's laughter.

He would savor those memories for the rest of his life, never forgetting the time he spent with his first grandson, Trafalgar Law.

~0~

AN: and there we have it folks! the ending of this mini-series. what are your thoughts? cute? funny? friggen adorable? my writing is slowly becoming more dilapidated? i need work with grammar? never ever for never never leave you with such gaping cliff hangers ever again? whatever the answer is, im happy to hear it :)


	20. Dumplings

Law swung his legs boredly in the chair he was seated on, wondering when Doflamingo would come downstairs into the shop where the kid had been left so that they could go back to the ship together. It'd been about fifteen minutes since the captain had disappeared upstairs, leaving the boy to entertain himself in a store that sold nothing but fishing supplies.

Needless to say, wandering around three times hadn't even done any good.

Law sighed loudly once more, wishing for something interesting to happen to him or at least to get the old man's attention from behind the counter. It didn't work and the kid slumped back into the chair even further until his head was the only thing reclined against the back of his seat.

The boy glanced outside again, wondering if anything had changed on the streets but was only greeted with the same dumpling vendor, book store and pet food mart as before. Law turned his attention back to the bait and tackle merchandise and began devising a plan that might be able to get the pirate back downstairs and out of the door in the next few minutes but was sidetracked when something new happened outside.

The kid looked out the window once more and was met with the sight of a little girl who had short pink hair and was attempting to steal a skewer of dumplings. Law stared as she tried jumping as high as she could, just missing the ends of a stick with her stubby fingers. The little boy raised an eyebrow when the vendor came around to the other side and shooed her away but grinned as she eventually snuck back and resumed her endeavor.

Law quickly sat up and hopped off of his chair, heading straight for the door and ran across the street while the old man in the shop was completely oblivious to any noise that was made.

When the boy approached, the little girl didn't even pay him any mind. She continued with her attempts of jumping and reaching but was nowhere near tall enough to accomplish the task. Law then looked up at the man behind the cart and noticed he wasn't even giving his attention to anything shorter than his booth. The little boy paused for a second more before reaching up and easily grabbing the skewer closest to the ledge. He waited for a moment to see if the man had even noticed but the only one who seemed to be paying any attention was the little girl. When Law met her gaze he cringed a bit, noticing that she looked ready to tackle him to the ground and steal the treat.

Movement came from behind the cart which caused the boy to return his thoughts to the present situation. Law reached out with his free hand and took hold of one of the little girl's, quickly pulling her away and leading her down the sidewalk. The man said nothing to the two and was probably unaware that some of his retail had been stolen.

Law rounded a corner and stopped, smiling to himself when it was obvious he'd gotten away with being such a conniving criminal. However, he wasn't ready for what happened next.

The little boy found himself on the floor with the pink haired girl on top of him, wrestling for the dumplings until she had them firmly secured in her grasp. Law stared at her in bewilderment, hardly putting up a fight and wondering why she was so insistent on taking the skewer. A giggle of triumphant laughter came from her as she held the treat in front of her while her eyes practically sparkled from the anticipation. She then climbed off of Law and continued scampering down the street with her prize in hand.

Law stood up and brushed off his cloths, happy that he'd found something to do but regretting that he chose to spend his time with such a selfish person. He didn't even bother turning around to watch the little girl leave and just head back the way he came so he could resume sitting and waiting in the fishing store. But just as he neared the corner, he was stopped once more.

Someone grabbed the sleeve of his shirt from behind and spun the kid around until he was facing the other way. Law blinked in surprise when he stared down at the little girl who had just run off but stood petrified at what she did next.

The pink haired girl roughly grabbed the front of the boy's shirt and tugged him down, bringing him closer to her level before pressing her lips against his. Law was frozen in his spot, stunned into motionless as he tasted a hint of curry, pizza and spaghetti sauce from the girl before she pulled away.

Law stuck his tongue out in disgust as an expression of repulsion came over his features. He turned and was about to ask why on earth she would do something gross like that when an object was abruptly shoved into his line of sight. When he focused on it, Law saw that it was one of the dumplings. He took the offered dessert and watched as the girl once again went dashing down the street.

~0~

AN: im pretty sure all of you can guess what little voracious pink haired girl i stuck in this chapter ;)

AND! exciting news! well... it's exciting for me, idk about you guys BUT i just wanted to say a big thank you to 1.) animexisxlife for sharing my story on tumblr; seeing it spontaneously posted there by someone other than myself made me squeal like a fanatical fangirl :D, and 2.) thank you to all of my lovely ~100~ favoriters out there. im still trying to figure out where i went so right with this story xD

also, i think i may have mislead some people in my AN on the last chapter and i just wanted to say NO, i will not be stopping "Consequences" any time soon and it will not be ended until Law leaves Doflamingo's crew :)


	21. Feathers

A cool sea breeze whispered through the air, lightly tousling the newspaper in the captain's hands as he turned another page. Doflamingo casually skimmed the titles, looking for anything that stood out as interesting from the usual garbage typed up. But as he leafed through the sheets it seemed like there wasn't any news worthy of note. With this start to his morning the pirate hypothesized that the rest of the day wasn't going to be much better.

Doflamingo folded the paper and let out a breath, contemplating what to do next since now he was just bored out of his skull. A few thoughts came to mind but since he was aboard his own ship and liked the fact that everything in sight wasn't cut up to small pieces it probably wouldn't be wise to hone his Devil Fruit abilities. The captain mumbled some complaints about slow currents and sluggish winds as he reached for his coat which was on the chair next to him.

When something cold and metallic came into contact with his skin the pirate frowned, glancing over to find that his feather jacket wasn't there. Doflamingo looked over at the other chair tucked near the table he was sitting at only to see it wasn't there either. The pirate raised an eyebrow, wondering where it could have wandered off to until little trotting footsteps came to his ears. The man peered over his shoulder, searching for the smallest member of his crew and frowning even deeper at what he found.

Law ran across the deck of the ship with a very familiar and large pink coat draped over his shoulders. The little boy jogged in a mismatch pattern, calling out 'whooshing' noises and airplane sounds as if he were flying. Doflamingo stared at the scene for a while, watching as the kid also flapped his arms up and down and waved the feathers all around like wings.

As Law was about to make another round across the deck, he caught sight of the pirate watching him with an expression that made it seem like he was doing something wrong. The little boy immediately stopped what he was doing and hung his head apologetically, gazing back with large shimmering eyes as he waited for how the other would react. The captain sat for a bit before raising a hand out in front of himself and using a finger to motion for the kid to approach.

Law hesitated momentarily but complied, slowly making his way over as he continued to wait for what the man had in store for him.

He stopped just out of Doflamingo's reach, causing the elder to commend him internally since it was obvious the kid was finally learning to be cautious. But nevertheless, the captain had something he wanted to accomplish right now.

Doflamingo turned completely in his chair and extended an arm, easily capable of reaching the child now that he had a more flexible posture. The pirate caught Law before he had a chance to run off, pinching his little nose with two fingers and pulling him forward. The little boy let out a sound of protest as he shut his eyes, wondering what exactly was going to happen next.

When he came to a stop he opened his eyes once more only to have them covered with something that caused his vision to be tinted with purple. Law blinked a few times in confusion before glancing up and noticing Doflamingo was no longer wearing his glasses.

"The coat isn't complete without the shades, kid." The pirate captain stated with a smug grin, earning a beaming smile from the little boy. Law ran off once again, scuttling happily across the ship with the large feather coat dragging behind him.

~0~

AN: it's 1:30 in the morning and i'm updating chapter 21 of "consequences" with the backup of the backup of what i originally wanted to post because i have lost control of my life

oh! and as some of you may have noticed i have a tendency of making our little Law meet various OP characters in this fic. so, being the infinitely generous person i am, i would love to know who you want Trafalgar Law to coincidentally meet as a child! bear with me though, i might not be able to accommodate all characters and if you suggest someone like Luffy or Chopper i'm going to save them for later since neither have even been born yet. suggest as many characters as you want and i will try to give priority to the ones with multiple suggestions :)

one last thing: OH MY GOD. 21 CHAPTERS. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS? !  
i have a little scrolling bar in the drop-down box! ! ! :D


	22. Swelter

At this point in their voyage through the Grand Line, none of Doflamingo's crew could tell the difference between their current location and the River Styx. The sun beat down relentlessly on the deck, hardly leaving a single place to escape its rays. The cabins sweltered, land was nowhere in sight and the water rations were dipping dangerously low. The captain himself sat beneath a small bit of cover, watching as the light slowly crept its way across the boards. The man hadn't even bothered wearing his coat or shoes today since the temperatures had been uncomfortably warm since sunrise.

Unfortunately, there was nothing a single person could do but wait for the intended destination as the wind and tides gently nudged the ship forward. His subordinates took shifts handling the sails and rudder but each one still grumbled and cursed when it was their turn to move.

A bead of sweat ran down Doflamingo's temple but he took no initiative to wipe it away since he could hardly muster any will power to do much more than sit. The captain reached out for his glass of water, coming to the conclusion that he'd waited long enough since his last drink and it was definitely time to take another. But as his fingers searched for the cup they were rewarded with nothing. The pirate frowned, remembering exactly where he set it down last as he turned to see why it wasn't there.

Of course, to very little surprise, seated next to the captain was a little mooch. If there was one thing the man could regret right now in his life it was making said mooch learn to walk. Doflamingo glowered peevishly as he watched Trafalgar Law guzzle the contents inside as if the glass were his to begin with. However, the most striking thing about this situation wasn't the stolen water. Just as Doflamingo was getting ready to reprimand the kid for taking his drink he suddenly took notice to how the little boy had dressed himself.

Or, to be more precise, how he'd neglected to dress himself.

Law sat buck naked, facing the captain without a single scrap of clothing to cover himself up with. Doflamingo narrowed his eyes further, considering that maybe he should assert his parental authority and make the kid show at least a bit of decency. But when the boy set the glass down, sighed exasperatedly and laid back with his arms spread wide in an attempt to cool off from the unbearable heat the man's argument died on his tongue.

"Whatever floats your boat, kid." The pirate stated under his breath as he turned away and barked at one of his subordinates to get him two more glasses of water.

~0~

AN: i promise i have longer stories to give you ;A; i also read every single character suggestion (thanks to everyone who sent one!) and it seems a lot of you somehow managed to read my mind. there are several characters i've already been thinking about integrating along with several i hadn't considered :)

AND! i'm promising myself to upload longer chapters! (HAH! right! who am i trying to kid? the last time i promised myself anything i accidentally changed a oneshot into a 45k word fanfic titled "Consequences")


	23. A Bit of Insight

Trafalgar Law skipped down the street, extremely happy with what was currently in his hand. He had been staring at a little booth selling big, red apples dipped in caramel on display, practically drooling until one was unexpectedly handed to him. Initially he had been too shocked to accept the gift, but after a moment to soak in the situation Law had taken hold of the stick with both hands and a gleam of delight in his eyes. The stranger who gave him the treat stared in fascination with an unmoving expression, genuinely curious at how a person could become so joyful over such a small gift. But the man hadn't expected that after his generosity the little boy would start following along right beside him.

"Oi, kid. Don't you have parents looking for you?" The man asked as he glanced over his shoulder once more, noticing the child was still only staring at the plump treat. Law briefly peaked over the apple before shaking his head and continuing forward. The man frowned.

The two walked over to a small seating area not even a block from the apple stand and the stranger took a seat next to another man who was reading a newspaper. A sickly sweet smell wafted through the air and the kid crinkled his nose, recognizing the stench as cigar smoke.

Law climbed onto a chair next the man who bought him the apple, sitting pleasantly as if he were an actual member of this group. The man with the cigar lowered his paper at the sound of the other taking a seat, folding it and setting it aside. The other man pulled out a few items from a paper bag, revealing two take-out trays and a bottle of wine along with two wine glasses.

The man with the cigar suddenly took notice to the uninvited guest, giving the little boy a bored stare before addressing the other.

"Daz, what have I told you about feeding strays?" He asked with mild amusement as the child continued to marvel at his apple. Law didn't even take notice to the joke as he was captivated by the fruit in his grasp.

"I'm sorry, Sir Crocodile. I couldn't help myself." The man replied while he opened the bottle and carefully poured the wine. Crocodile just scoffed, removing the cigar from his mouth before snuffing it out in an ash tray. It was certainly strange, but contrary to his first mate's violent reputation he was no better than a giant teddy bear when it came to children. This wasn't the first kid that Daz had bought something to eat for, but it was definitely the first one to tag along after the man.

"Hey, brat. What's your name?" The pirate captain asked as he took the offered glass and swirled the dark liquid inside. The little boy looked up when he was addressed.

"Tafaga Law." He replied as best he could. Crocodile chuckled lightly when it seemed the kid wasn't even old enough to pronounce his own name correctly yet.

"You know, Law, you're supposed to eat the apple." The man stated before taking a sip. Law returned his attention to the large fruit, spinning the stick in his fingers as he inspected the whole thing once again.

"But it's so pretty." The little boy replied, holding the thing up in front of him as he tried to get a better look. Crocodile smirked as he turned his attention to the lunch that his subordinate had brought.

"Yes, it's very pretty but it'll go to waste if you don't eat it." The man claimed, opening his take-out container to reveal the freshly cooked contents inside. A look of curiosity came over Law's expression as he spun the caramel apple once more, trying to decide where to even begin.

~0~

By now Doflamingo expected his little scatter brained charge to not be where he was supposed to be and mostly likely wandering around on the streets. Usually when the pirate found the kid again he'd smack Law upside the head and call him an idiot, but that tactic didn't seem to be very helpful as a means to educate the brat to stay put. A couple of frightening thoughts came to mind and gave him plenty of ideas that would teach the boy not to aimlessly meander on his own. However, when the pirate captain caught sight of the child and who he was sitting with, all thoughts on the subject left his mind.

A vicious smile overcame the man's expression as he snickered delightfully, undeniably pleased with who was just down the street.

The element of surprise was rarely ever on the blonde captain's side so when Crocodile casually glanced up from his meal he didn't need to look twice at the approaching man as a large pink feathered jacket came into view. The pirate scowled at the second uninvited guest, not even bothering to greet the other captain.

Law looked over his shoulder with the caramel apple practically lodged in his mouth as he continued to try gnawing at the skin. Doflamingo pursed his lips, also noticing a few dribbles of spit running over the little boy's fingers and down the stick. He stared at the kid for a moment, wondering if Law would even realize he was currently in trouble or not. But when the boy turned away without a single care it was obvious he was much too preoccupied. The captain just ignored him and turned to the man who also seemed to be paying him very little regard.

"Good afternoon to you as well, old friend." Doflamingo stated with a sneer, earning a glare from Crocodile. The eccentric pirate just snickered as he reached down and placed a hand on the back of the boy's chair.

"It seems you can be nice to my little Law but persist on having trouble with me. Are you still holding that nasty grudge after all of these years?" The man asked pleasantly before he grabbed the skewered apple from the kid's hands, earning a sound of disapproval from Law. Doflamingo lifted the treat up and took a bite, making sure to avoid the slobber that seemed to encompass the majority of the fruit before handing it back. Crocodile raised an eyebrow at what the other said.

"Yours?" The man pondered aloud as an amused expression came to his features. "I never would have pegged you as the type to play Daddy, Doflamingo." The pirate captain continued with a belittling smirk on his face. Law was completely oblivious to the two men throwing verbal attacks at each other since, with the help of Doflamingo, he could now actually eat the large fruit.

The blonde shrugged his shoulders, a sly grin on his lips. "It seems even the most ruthless of us have a soft spot for cute defenseless things."

Crocodile scoffed at the reply before glancing back at the little boy. The man suddenly reached across the small table and took hold of the kid's chin, swiveling his head back and forth to get a better look.

"Now that you mention it, his surname seems to resemble that of a certain woman we both knew." The captain acknowledged, removing his hand and allowing Law to return his attention to the apple. "But as I look at the brat he has absolutely none of your ugly features." Crocodile carried on, leaning back in his chair and throwing the other man a wicked grin.

"Ouch, that's just cold." Doflamingo replied, his expression still devious despite the insult.

"You couldn't even get the girl and now you're stuck with her brat whose father is a man you hate with a passion." Crocodile summed up, shaking his head at the ridiculous situation and smiling even wider as the blonde's expression dropped the more irritated he became. "Now that's a cliché romance novel if I ever heard one."

Doflamingo scowled angrily for a moment but quickly replaced his features with another of his usual smiles.

"Yes, perhaps I could sell my story to some overenthusiastic amateur writer and allow her a few moments of fame." The man replied in good spirits before crossing to the other side of the table. He stood beside Crocodile and bent over, placing both hands flush on the surface before him as their expressions reversed. While Doflamingo's grin stretched across his visage, Crocodile's glowering features overtook his.

"Now now, it's been so long since we've seen each other. Is that face really a proper way to greet your little brother?"

His comment earned a more viscous scowl from the elder captain.

"We aren't family, Donquixote. Don't delude yourself." Crocodile retorted as he reached for his wine glass once again only to realize that it was empty. Doflamingo chuckled.

"At one time you wouldn't have denied that." The man replied calmly, lifting a hand and calling out his Devil Fruit powers. The wine bottle was then lifted from the table and uncorked before being tilted until the dark liquid spilled into the other man's glass. An unreadable expression came over Crocodile's features.

"And if I ask, I'm sure Kaido is still willing to offer you the same agreement he did before." Doflamingo continued as he set the bottle down.

"Thanks but no thanks. I'd rather not sell my soul to that man like you did." Crocodile replied brusquely, not even bothering to think over the proposal. The blonde smirked, completely aware of that answer before it even left the other man's thoughts. But nevertheless, he still would have liked to have heard an affirmation.

"It's not as bad as you think." Doflamingo stated, lifting a hand from the table and placing it on the back of the other captain's chair. "After all, it's very beneficial to have powerful allies on one's side."

Crocodile stared at the eccentric pirate long and hard for a while before glancing away as he lightly shook his head.

"It seems my leave did nothing to clear that hallucinogenic fog in your brain." The man stated, reaching for the wine glass with one hand while he plucked Doflamingo's fingers from his chair with the other. He dropped the blonde's hand on the table again, signaling that he wasn't in the mood to be anywhere near the other. Doflamingo frowned lightly but ignored the gesture.

"You're wrong. After you abandoned me…" The captain started as a response only to be interrupted right away.

"Abandoned _you_?" Crocodile set his glass down with such force that it even surprised him when the thing didn't shatter. "If I recall correctly, you're the one who ran away to become that bastard's little bitch." Crocodile retorted with a glare, cracking his knuckles against his armrest as he sent a condescending look to the other. "_You_ left _me_ all because of some pretty little speech about revenge that Kaido gave you. And, by the way, how is that plan going?" The captain asked with a bit of spite in his tone. Doflamingo was at a loss of words for a moment but composed himself as he quickly came up with an answer.

"If you're so curious then why not team up with me and find out?" The blonde requested with a playful grin. Crocodile responded with roaring laughter, clasping a hand over his eyes and causing several pedestrians to glance his way.

"That's rich! The man promises you retribution and you follow after him like a lost puppy! Then after nearly five years he has yet to keep his side of the bargain!"

Doflamingo growled low in his throat. However, he didn't get a chance to say anything as Crocodile stood from his seat to stare him down nearly eye to eye.

"Tell me, bird-brain. When was the last time you did something, anything, for yourself?" The pirate inquired, taking notice to the fact that the blonde was almost a head taller than him now. "When was the last time you weren't out on some errand for that son of a bitch? How long has it been since you had to check in with Kaido like some sort of whipped call-boy?"

Doflamingo stood with a surprised expression, genuinely lost at how to respond. Crocodile only scoffed at the lack of an answer before digging his fingers into the other man's shirt and pulling him forward.

"Let me give you one more bit of insight before sailing off without you once more." The pirate ground out between his teeth as the resentment in his expression intensified. Doflamingo suddenly felt a hand wrap around his jaw before his head was turned to meet the questioning gaze of Law.

"Since you're too stupid to realize this yourself I'll make it simple; ditch the brat or ditch your master. Even you know somewhere in that empty head of yours you won't be able to keep both much longer."

The blonde captain only stared in bewilderment, paralyzed by that statement before he glanced at the other man from the corner of his eye. Crocodile returned the look with a serious expression as he tried to drive home his point.

"I'm surprised Kaido let you hold onto the kid as long as he has. I may not be the world's most insightful father but even I know that a brat his age is nothing but work and trouble." Crocodile proclaimed, gradually quieting his voice when he noticed Law had lowered his apple with a worried expression on his face. "You may see him as cute and defenseless but I know Kaido sees him as nothing more than unnecessary collateral against you and therefore against business." He finished, roughly pushing Doflamingo away before jamming a finger into the other man's sternum.

"I'd rather not have some kid caught in the middle of your idiocy but especially not that Trafalgar woman's brat. Understand?" The captain declared, giving the pirate in front of him a hard stare then taking his seat once more.

The words echoed through his mind as Doflamingo tried to let that proclamation settle in. The blonde captain subconsciously clenched his fists, earning a sharp pain in his hands as a few fingernails threatened to break through the skin of his palms. He didn't even realize he was glaring intensely at the elder pirate until Crocodile resumed his meal once again and completely disregarded the other standing hardly even a foot away.

If it had been anyone else, Doflamingo would have shattered their jaw. He would have beaten them into unconsciousness and sliced them to pieces before spitting on their dismembered corpse. If anyone else had been so bold to say such demeaning things to his face they wouldn't have lived to describe his reaction. But it wasn't anyone else; it was Crocodile. The same guy he'd admired for over ten years and one of the few people in the world he considered to be something like family. Despite that bond though, Doflamingo still felt his rage bubbling deep inside as well as the familiar and overpowering need to kill or destroy something. The man gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, hardly able to hold himself back which earned a disconcerted look from Daz Bones.

"Doffu's not bad."

The blonde captain suddenly blinked himself out of his rising temper, glancing up when he heard his name from across the table. Crocodile was also brought from his thoughts and looked in the same direction, making eye contact with Law.

"Doffu's strong and I like him." The little boy continued as he glanced back up at Doflamingo. Crocodile gave the kid a bemused look while the other pirate just stared back. The elder captain chuckled, setting down his fork once more.

"First you kidnap the poor boy and cart him around the ocean but now you have him drugged? Are you so prone to abandonment issues that you have to force a child to be your friend?"

Doflamingo didn't even register his movement until he realized a few invisible wires were pulled taunt from his fingers to the other man's neck. Crocodile was unfazed; he knew what position he was in but also knew it was much too easy to counter.

"Relax, Feathers." The man stated as he flicked one of the wires with a finger, resulting in a high pitched 'twang'. When the blonde reluctantly obliged, Crocodile turned back to Law.

"Tell me, brat. Have you ever met Kaido before?" The captain asked simply. The little boy blinked a few times before glancing over at Doflamingo. When he wasn't given any sort of sign that he had, the kid shook his head and Crocodile grinned.

"Well then, let me put this into perspective for you." The man continued as he stood up and walked around his subordinate to approach the boy, crouching down to meet him at eye level. Law stared at him silently as he began to speak. "Imagine your 'Doffu' a couple of feet taller, several hundred pounds heavier and about four times uglier." The captain announced, glancing at the other pirate with a malicious grin. "Well, maybe just three times."

Doflamingo rolled his eyes. "What on Earth are you trying to accomplish with this?" The blonde asked pensively before reaching out for the unguarded takeout tray and popping a role of sushi into his mouth. Crocodile ignored the comment and continued.

"That man also has no compassion or tolerance for anything. Do you no what that means?"

Law stared a moment longer before slowly shaking his head.

"It means that if you do anything wrong he won't ask any questions, he'll just kill you." The pirate captain explained straightforward. It took a moment for the boy to begin to understand what he was told but when he finally did he glanced over at the blonde man with a confused expression.

"That's right." Crocodile carried on, softly resting a hand on top of the kid's head as he also looked straight at the other man. "Your Doffu works for that animal. If he does anything wrong or lets anyone get in his way he'll be dead before he could even begin to fathom an excuse."

Law turned back to the elder captain with a look of horror on his face. Crocodile was briefly stunned by the sudden reaction from the child, somewhat expecting the boy to spontaneously burst into tears at any time. When he didn't, the man chuckled with amusement. He gently lowered his hand to the side of the little boy's head before lightly stroking his thumb across Law's cheekbone.

"You look like a man of action, kid; as if you've already set up your own successful future without even having to try." Crocodile mused to himself. Law nervously glanced between the other two men before resting his eyes on the captain next to him once more. "Guys like that are hard to come by nowadays so I'm sure you can understand my fascination."

Doflamingo narrowed his eyes as if a hunting beast warning another to back off from what belonged to him. But Crocodile wasn't interested in the other man; for now he saw an opportunity he couldn't refuse.

"How about it kid?" The pirate captain asked with determination. "You can come aboard my ship if you'd like. I don't have some behemoth overseer leering over my shoulder. The only thing you'd have to worry about is growing up smart and strong."

Doflamingo felt like lunging over the table at the other man but was stopped before he had a chance. The blonde glanced down to see the iron grip of Daz Bones currently wrapped around his forearm. He scowled viciously at the touch, wishing dearly to slice the man's arm to bits but restrained himself for the time being.

A light thump followed shortly by the clink of something small and wooden was then heard hitting the table. Doflamingo looked up to see what disturbed the silence only to find a half-eaten caramel apple sitting in front of where Law should have been. In the next second he felt something little wrap its arms around one of his legs. The pirate glanced down, unsurprised yet entirely surprised to discover Law clinging tightly around his knee.

Crocodile stood and raised an eyebrow at the display. He stared at the child who was half hidden by the blonde captain's leg for a bit before scoffing.

"Suit yourself, kid." The man stated as he began heading back to his seat. Law watched him slowly making his way closer and looked up at Doflamingo before tugging repeatedly on the other's shorts. The blonde man seemed to tear himself from some deep thought as he glanced down at the little boy. Law didn't even say what was on the tip of his tongue but Doflamingo could still read it in the kid's eyes.

_Take me away from here._

The pirate conceded with a nod and began leaving with Law following along right beside him. But instead of a straight-shot to the ship, Doflamingo paused and turned back to Crocodile with his ever-present grin on his face.

"Let's grab lunch sometime, just the two of us. Shall we?" The man asked sincerely, both relieved and regretful that they would be heading their separate ways.

Crocodile stared at the other man long and hard, allowing only the sounds of the few passing strangers around to fill the silence.

"You're such a clueless moron." The elder captain finally stated before he turned to his lunch tray and successfully ended the conversation.

"It's a date then." Doflamingo stated with a chuckle to follow as he began heading out once more.

~0~

The ship was in sight in no time as the captain and littlest crewmate made their way across the docks. A scowl seemed to be etching its way deeper and deeper into the man's expression, causing the crowds to part for him or risk being slaughtered as a result of his foul mood. Regardless of how much the pirate wanted to ignore it and put it out of his mind, the points Crocodile had brought up had a few valid ideas.

Then again, "a few" was a very, very far cry from accurate. In fact, the other man had hit the nail on the head with just about every word he'd stated. But as the pirate was about to get into another mental argument with himself over this whole ordeal a hesitant voice called out.

"Doffu?"

The captain grunted in acknowledgement, hardly even paying attention to the squirt. Law kept his vision on the ground as he bunched up the hem of his shirt in his fingers over and over.

"Am… am I a burden?"

The screeching sounds of brakes being forcefully applied could practically be heard as the pirate abruptly stopped midstride. Law finally looked up at the other, wondering if he was alright or not. But when the little boy started convincing himself he'd made the pirate angry with such a silly question he quickly glanced away, embarrassed for even speaking a word.

Doflamingo stared at the child in front of him, his eyes wide behind his shades in bewilderment. With the same speed he'd used to stop, the man was down on one knee in front of the little boy. He looked Law straight in the eyes with a disgruntled frown for a moment, throwing the boy further into question before calmly raising a hand and flicking Law in the forehead. A small sound of pain came from the kid as he clasped the sore spot with both hands.

"You clueless moron."

Law looked up with confusion, partially wondering why that phrase was so familiar and partially because he thought the man would be angrier. A hand suddenly appeared on the kid's head and he flinched, fully expecting to be physically reprimanded some more. But instead Doflamingo used it to muss up his hair.

After his hair was thoroughly tangled the captain held onto the top of the boy's head so he had to look directly at him.

"Don't ask questions you already know the answers to." Doflamingo replied sternly. But that statement was far from fulfilling, causing Law's heart to sink as he feared the worst possible response. The captain frowned deeper when he could see the disbelief in the little boy's eyes.

"That's not what I meant." The pirate said as he then brought his head closer until his and Law's foreheads and noses were touching ever so slightly.

"If you were a burden then you wouldn't be allowed on my ship."

Doflamingo stood not even a moment later, continuing on his way as thoughts of his next destination ran through his mind. Law watched the man walk away for a second, taking this as a chance for a beaming smile to light up his features from what he was told until he realized he needed to catch up or risk getting lost.

The pirate captain subconsciously allowed a small grin to tug at the corner of his lips when he heard little footsteps running after him.

~0~

AN: hmmm... i wonder if anyone will notice that i crumbled the fourth wall a bit and stuck myself in this chapter ;D

hardest thing about writing this fic? making it so people like doflamingo and crocodile don't seem like pedophiles x_x i promise that's not even close to the direction i'm making this fanfic go. i can definitely point you to some of those stories because i've read a few and the plot/writing is phenomenal but poor Law's circumstances are shit. no... Law will stay cute and sweet until he picks up an anatomy book and ruins his innocence without even knowing it xD


	24. 10-6

Doflamingo uncapped the lid of a permanent marker with his teeth, holding the thing steady in one hand while the other was preoccupied with making sure the little boy he was kneeling in front of couldn't disappear again. The pirate found that when ever he actually needed the kid for something (namely chores and mundane tasks he himself didn't want to do) Law had a knack for making himself scarce. However, right now wasn't some unfair abuse of power on his part; but nevertheless, Doflamingo still didn't want to go hunting down the brat once more if he suddenly decided to escape.

"I said stand up straight, not on your tip-toes." The man growled as he exerted more force into the hand he had on Law's head, successfully pushing the kid down to a normal height. The little boy pouted a bit but didn't make a comment as he strained his eyes to look up as far as possible.

"What are you doing?" Law asked curiously, watching while the pirate drew a thick, black line just over his head on the wall he was standing in front of.

"You don't remember? We did this last year." The captain replied after capping the marker again and setting it down. The kid thought for a moment but eventually shook his head. Doflamingo wasn't paying attention though as he reached for a small tray that was sitting off to his side. He picked it up and held it between himself and the kid before taking hold of one of Law's wrists and pressing his hand into a thin layer of yellow paint coating the tray.

"Oh! I remember now!" The child called out as he recalled the same squishy, cold sensation on his fingers. He also remembered disappearing before the man was finished with this task last year, forcing the pirate to have to look for him. It was definitely one of the best games of hide-and-seek he'd ever played but also resulted in a very angry Doflamingo who had carried him back to this place by his ankle.

After the kid's fingers and palm were coated, Doflamingo lifted the little boy's hand and placed it on the wall next to the black line he had just made. The man pushed against it, leaving a very clear and crisp hand print as he pulled Law's arm away.

"But why are you doing it?" The kid asked as the pirate captain reached for the permanent marker again.

"Because."

Law frowned in annoyance, upset since Doflamingo was dodging his question.

"But why?" The little boy insisted, watching while the man continued searching the floor for his pen. The pirate scanned the area one last time, his frustration growing immensely until he finally realized what had happened to it. He looked up at the kid with an irritated frown but all he got in return was Law's sweet and innocent expression.

"Give it back."

Law shook his head. Doflamingo narrowed his eyes dangerously, wondering if the kid really wanted to play this game now. Of course Law obviously did since he continued to stand pleasantly, patiently waiting for the pirate to answer his question.

Somehow the brat was able to steal things so quickly it was as if they disappeared into thin air. It wasn't because of a Devil Fruit power though because the kid didn't sink to the bottom of the sea every time Vergo tossed him into the water for swimming lessons. Doflamingo let out an exasperated huff, deciding he should elaborate on his actions since Law really didn't remember.

"You of all people should know what today is. After all, five years is plenty of time to learn and remember something." Doflamingo stated. The little boy continued to stare at him in puzzlement, digging through his fuzzy memories and taking his mind off of other matters. Doflamingo quickly shot out a hand when the kid's concentration was split too far for him to react accordingly, reaching behind Law and finding what he was looking for. When the permanent marker was no longer in his possession, Law called out in discontentment.

"Doffu, not fair!" The little boy complained as a sulk contorted his eyebrows. The pirate just snickered while he uncapped the thing again.

"Alright, alright; I'll let you do the honors." The captain said when he noticed tears of frustration brimming in the little boy's eyes. Law made no move to take the marker for a moment, waiting to see if the elder would continue to tease him without answering any of his questions. When Doflamingo seemed completely sincere he reached out and grabbed the fat pen, holding it in his clean hand.

"Write a '5' next to the line I drew."

Law did as he was told, raising the marker to the wall and drawing the number as best as he could. In the end the 5 looked more like an S, especially since the 4 beneath it was written considerably neater. Doflamingo grinned amusedly at the poor penmanship but didn't comment on it as he stood.

"Wash off your hands before you go running around my ship and get paint on the rest of my walls." The pirate instructed, gathering his materials together in order to put them where they belong. The kid nodded in response and began scampering in a different direction. Just as he was nearing the exit the captain turned, remembering something he'd forgotten to say.

"One more thing." Doflamingo called out, making the boy to stop and spin around.

"Happy birthday, Law."

The kid stood for a moment, unsure how to respond until it suddenly hit him. All of the pieces from today finally fit and his eyes brightened since he now understood what the captain had been up to. Doflamingo regretted not starting this tradition a little earlier in the boy's life but realized it was better late than never. He decided that every year on October sixth he'd measure the kid and take a handprint even if the idea made him look like some sort of overly dedicated mother.

~0~

AN: i should be doing a bajillion other things right now, but here i am writing for Consequences...

and of course crying over this scene as well. i mean, think about it; imagine doflamingo looking at this wall now with all of Law's handprints from age 4 to age 16ish because i am right now and it's breaking my heart ;A;


End file.
